Shares of Dodge-maker Stellantis drop 8% after it issues profit warning

Stellantis on Monday trimmed its 2024 annual guidance on the back of deteriorating "global industry dynamics" and bolstered competition from China, sending Milan-listed shares lower on open.

The French-Italian conglomerate, known for brands such as Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Maserati, warned of lower-than-expected sales "across most regions" in the second half of the year. It now pencils in an adjusted operating income (AOI) margin between 5.5% to 7.0% for the full-year 2024 period, down from a "double digit" outlook.

It also lowered projections for its industrial free cash flow to a range between minus 5 billion euros ($5.58 billion) to minus 10 billion euros, from a "positive" guidance previously, as a result of a lower anticipated adjusted operating income (AOI) margin and temporarily higher working capital over the second half of this year.

The carmaker was trading down 8% at 08:11 a.m. London time.

The Stellantis profit warning comes days after German automaker Volkswagen once more slashed its own annual outlook on Friday, now guiding for an operating return on sales of 5.6% in 2024, from a 6.5-7.0% range previously.

In a Google-translated bourse filing, it attributed its lowered projections to lagging developments in its passenger car and commercial vehicle brands, along with a "deterioration of the macroeconomic environment, giving rise to further risks, particularly for the Core brand group."

This breaking news story is being updated.