The automotive group around the star brand announces a share buyback.
(Photo: Reuters)
Stuttgart The Mercedes-Benz Group AG wants to buy back its own shares for up to four billion euros on the market. The executive board and supervisory board decided on Thursday, said the Stuttgart car company. From March, the shares should be purchased on the stock exchange over a period of up to two years and then withdrawn.
It has been agreed with the two major Chinese shareholders BAIC and Geely that they will each keep their stake in the Dax group below ten percent by selling shares in the program. The share of the parent company of the vehicle brand Mercedes-Benz reacted to the announcement in after-hours trading with a slight price increase.
The automotive group presented figures for the past financial year on Friday morning. A strong record is expected. After two increases over the course of the year, the carmaker recently announced an operating margin (adjusted EBIT) in the car division of 13 to 15 percent for 2022.
Despite higher costs for energy, parts and freight, the margin after nine months at 15 percent was almost three percentage points higher than in the previous year at 12.2 percent. Mercedes was also more optimistic in the van division than at the beginning of the year.
In 2022, group sales should be well above the previous year’s level, which was still burdened by Corona and the lack of chips, and group earnings before interest and taxes should also be well above that. The former truck subsidiary Daimler Truck, which was spun off in December 2021, has been excluded from the previous year’s figures.
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