大眾集團(tuán)(Volkswagen AG)考慮將保時(shí)捷(Porsche)分拆上市的行為,將成為一個(gè)戰(zhàn)略分水嶺,表明汽車行業(yè)前所未有的劇變可能才剛剛開始。
在應(yīng)對(duì)全球疫情方面,大眾集團(tuán)等老牌車企的表現(xiàn)遠(yuǎn)勝于預(yù)期,其盈利強(qiáng)勁且現(xiàn)金流充裕。然而,與特斯拉公司(Tesla Inc.)相比,它們的估值仍然處于低位。
沒有任何一位汽車業(yè)首席執(zhí)行官曾經(jīng)如赫伯特?迪斯一般,多次公開強(qiáng)調(diào),大眾集團(tuán)必須盡快進(jìn)行轉(zhuǎn)型。探索保時(shí)捷獨(dú)立上市的行為,既是對(duì)該需求的一種響應(yīng),也是探索其未來(lái)發(fā)展可能性的一塊試金石。
“低估值致使影響力缺失,這是迪斯此前一直抱怨的事情,也是大眾集團(tuán)一個(gè)很大的劣勢(shì)?!泵反睦浙y行(Bankhaus Metzler)的分析師尤爾根?皮珀表示,“保時(shí)捷的首次公開募股將成為一劑靈丹妙藥。”
德國(guó)法蘭克福股市甫一開盤,大眾的優(yōu)先股價(jià)格即上漲了1%。
保時(shí)捷對(duì)投資者的吸引力顯而易見。彭博行業(yè)研究(Bloomberg Intelligence)的分析師邁克爾?迪恩估計(jì),保時(shí)捷在首次公開募股中的估值或?qū)⑦_(dá)到1100億歐元(合1330億美元),比投資者目前對(duì)大眾汽車的估值高出約200億歐元。
然而,要達(dá)成此次交易并非易事。自2018年擔(dān)任大眾集團(tuán)首席執(zhí)行官以來(lái),62歲的迪斯為重組大眾汽車所做的其它嘗試,均遭遇了制度性障礙。大眾集團(tuán)的重大決策必須得到公司主要股東的批準(zhǔn),而這些股東由保時(shí)捷家族、皮耶希家族以及德國(guó)下薩克森州(下薩克森州傾向于支持強(qiáng)大的工會(huì))領(lǐng)導(dǎo),常有分歧。
老牌汽車公司
然而,特斯拉的迅速崛起向迪斯發(fā)出了一個(gè)明確信號(hào),那就是必須采取極端措施,讓資本市場(chǎng)對(duì)“老牌汽車公司”回心轉(zhuǎn)意。在大眾集團(tuán)對(duì)保時(shí)捷方案進(jìn)行評(píng)估之際,戴姆勒公司(Daimler AG)已經(jīng)決定分拆其卡車業(yè)務(wù)。此前多年,戴姆勒公司管理層一直反對(duì)該項(xiàng)舉措。自拆分以來(lái),戴姆勒的股價(jià)已經(jīng)上漲13%,并在三年高點(diǎn)附近徘徊。
即使在分拆之后,戴姆勒集團(tuán)的市值仍然約為860億美元,幾乎與蔚來(lái)汽車的估值相當(dāng),其市值漲幅約為去年?duì)I收的十分之一。
鑒于汽車業(yè)新進(jìn)入者不受以內(nèi)燃機(jī)為中心的龐大生產(chǎn)網(wǎng)絡(luò)的制約,在汽車制造商們是否有能力跟上新進(jìn)入者的步伐方面,投資者們對(duì)此持悲觀態(tài)度。但福特汽車公司(Ford Motor Co.)于上周宣布稱,到2030年,在歐洲地區(qū),其將僅出售電動(dòng)車(其去年在歐洲出售的乘用車均為燃油車),在一定程度上扭轉(zhuǎn)了投資者們的看法。
顯然,大眾將不遺余力地追趕特斯拉。在未來(lái)五年內(nèi),大眾集團(tuán)計(jì)劃在1500億歐元的支出預(yù)算中,拿出更大一部分用于投資電動(dòng)車及相關(guān)軟件。盡管大眾目前盈利強(qiáng)勁,但其可能會(huì)因?yàn)椴糠謽I(yè)務(wù)的退出,而產(chǎn)生巨大成本,從而出現(xiàn)資金緊張。
“大眾目前的資產(chǎn)負(fù)債表說(shuō)明,其可能既不能加速對(duì)電動(dòng)車和自動(dòng)駕駛汽車的投資,也不能為進(jìn)一步減少遺留問題提供資金支持?!盝efferies公司的分析師菲利普?侯喬伊在一份報(bào)告中表示。
類似于法拉利
保時(shí)捷上市可能會(huì)大有裨益,因?yàn)槠淦放朴绊懥涂诒梢耘c法拉利(Ferrari NV)相提并論,而后者是傳統(tǒng)汽車公司中近年少有的成功案例之一。自菲亞特克萊斯勒汽車公司(Fiat Chrysler)在2015年讓法拉利單獨(dú)上市至今,其股價(jià)已經(jīng)飆升了282%。
彭博行業(yè)研究的分析師迪恩表示,僅保時(shí)捷911一項(xiàng)就可能超過法拉利的息稅折舊攤銷前利潤(rùn)。而保時(shí)捷還有一個(gè)強(qiáng)力的電動(dòng)汽車項(xiàng)目,其2019年首次推出的Taycan車型預(yù)示著,到2025年,電動(dòng)汽車將占據(jù)保時(shí)捷銷量的半壁江山。
保時(shí)捷將在今年晚些時(shí)候推出一款更寬敞的Taycan車型,并計(jì)劃,在保時(shí)捷和奧迪(Audi)共同開發(fā)的新型電動(dòng)平臺(tái)基礎(chǔ)上,于2022年推出純電動(dòng)Macan。
屢見不鮮
保時(shí)捷獨(dú)立上市的想法并不新鮮。三年前,大眾的首席財(cái)務(wù)官盧茨?梅施克在斯圖加特郊外的一家研發(fā)中心舉行的一次非正式發(fā)布會(huì)上,指出了這一想法的潛在價(jià)值,結(jié)果卻遭到了總部的斥責(zé)。
汽車業(yè)轉(zhuǎn)型的概念多年前已經(jīng)出現(xiàn),現(xiàn)今則獲得了前所未有的關(guān)注,大眾董事會(huì)內(nèi)部的反對(duì)情緒似乎也因此有所緩解。去年第四季度,歐洲售出的乘用車中約有10%是純電動(dòng)汽車。去年12月,這一比例則約為14%。
盡管如此,保時(shí)捷上市仍然是一個(gè)未知數(shù)。大眾在五年前就進(jìn)行了資產(chǎn)評(píng)估,旨在建立更為分散和靈活的報(bào)告體系,簡(jiǎn)化其龐大的集團(tuán)結(jié)構(gòu)。但迄今為止,改革的成效并不明顯。將杜卡迪(Ducati)和蘭博基尼(Lamborghini)等小眾品牌分離出來(lái)的嘗試遭到了主要利益相關(guān)者的阻止。2019年大眾卡車部門Traton SE縮減IPO規(guī)模時(shí),幾乎因?yàn)閮?nèi)部紛爭(zhēng)而脫軌。
“你可能會(huì)認(rèn)為,在公司內(nèi)部出售意大利業(yè)務(wù)會(huì)更容易,但事實(shí)并非如此。這就引出了一個(gè)問題:保時(shí)捷為什么會(huì)出現(xiàn)這種情況?!奔幽么蠡始毅y行資本市場(chǎng)(RBC Capital Markets)的分析師湯姆?納拉揚(yáng)在電話中表示?!斑@讓傳統(tǒng)汽車公司感到沮喪。而特斯拉卻可以通過增發(fā)股票來(lái)為公司增長(zhǎng)融資,且能夠?qū)井a(chǎn)生積極影響。”(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:Claire
大眾集團(tuán)(Volkswagen AG)考慮將保時(shí)捷(Porsche)分拆上市的行為,將成為一個(gè)戰(zhàn)略分水嶺,表明汽車行業(yè)前所未有的劇變可能才剛剛開始。
在應(yīng)對(duì)全球疫情方面,大眾集團(tuán)等老牌車企的表現(xiàn)遠(yuǎn)勝于預(yù)期,其盈利強(qiáng)勁且現(xiàn)金流充裕。然而,與特斯拉公司(Tesla Inc.)相比,它們的估值仍然處于低位。
沒有任何一位汽車業(yè)首席執(zhí)行官曾經(jīng)如赫伯特?迪斯一般,多次公開強(qiáng)調(diào),大眾集團(tuán)必須盡快進(jìn)行轉(zhuǎn)型。探索保時(shí)捷獨(dú)立上市的行為,既是對(duì)該需求的一種響應(yīng),也是探索其未來(lái)發(fā)展可能性的一塊試金石。
“低估值致使影響力缺失,這是迪斯此前一直抱怨的事情,也是大眾集團(tuán)一個(gè)很大的劣勢(shì)?!泵反睦浙y行(Bankhaus Metzler)的分析師尤爾根?皮珀表示,“保時(shí)捷的首次公開募股將成為一劑靈丹妙藥?!?/p>
德國(guó)法蘭克福股市甫一開盤,大眾的優(yōu)先股價(jià)格即上漲了1%。
保時(shí)捷對(duì)投資者的吸引力顯而易見。彭博行業(yè)研究(Bloomberg Intelligence)的分析師邁克爾?迪恩估計(jì),保時(shí)捷在首次公開募股中的估值或?qū)⑦_(dá)到1100億歐元(合1330億美元),比投資者目前對(duì)大眾汽車的估值高出約200億歐元。
然而,要達(dá)成此次交易并非易事。自2018年擔(dān)任大眾集團(tuán)首席執(zhí)行官以來(lái),62歲的迪斯為重組大眾汽車所做的其它嘗試,均遭遇了制度性障礙。大眾集團(tuán)的重大決策必須得到公司主要股東的批準(zhǔn),而這些股東由保時(shí)捷家族、皮耶希家族以及德國(guó)下薩克森州(下薩克森州傾向于支持強(qiáng)大的工會(huì))領(lǐng)導(dǎo),常有分歧。
老牌汽車公司
然而,特斯拉的迅速崛起向迪斯發(fā)出了一個(gè)明確信號(hào),那就是必須采取極端措施,讓資本市場(chǎng)對(duì)“老牌汽車公司”回心轉(zhuǎn)意。在大眾集團(tuán)對(duì)保時(shí)捷方案進(jìn)行評(píng)估之際,戴姆勒公司(Daimler AG)已經(jīng)決定分拆其卡車業(yè)務(wù)。此前多年,戴姆勒公司管理層一直反對(duì)該項(xiàng)舉措。自拆分以來(lái),戴姆勒的股價(jià)已經(jīng)上漲13%,并在三年高點(diǎn)附近徘徊。
即使在分拆之后,戴姆勒集團(tuán)的市值仍然約為860億美元,幾乎與蔚來(lái)汽車的估值相當(dāng),其市值漲幅約為去年?duì)I收的十分之一。
鑒于汽車業(yè)新進(jìn)入者不受以內(nèi)燃機(jī)為中心的龐大生產(chǎn)網(wǎng)絡(luò)的制約,在汽車制造商們是否有能力跟上新進(jìn)入者的步伐方面,投資者們對(duì)此持悲觀態(tài)度。但福特汽車公司(Ford Motor Co.)于上周宣布稱,到2030年,在歐洲地區(qū),其將僅出售電動(dòng)車(其去年在歐洲出售的乘用車均為燃油車),在一定程度上扭轉(zhuǎn)了投資者們的看法。
顯然,大眾將不遺余力地追趕特斯拉。在未來(lái)五年內(nèi),大眾集團(tuán)計(jì)劃在1500億歐元的支出預(yù)算中,拿出更大一部分用于投資電動(dòng)車及相關(guān)軟件。盡管大眾目前盈利強(qiáng)勁,但其可能會(huì)因?yàn)椴糠謽I(yè)務(wù)的退出,而產(chǎn)生巨大成本,從而出現(xiàn)資金緊張。
“大眾目前的資產(chǎn)負(fù)債表說(shuō)明,其可能既不能加速對(duì)電動(dòng)車和自動(dòng)駕駛汽車的投資,也不能為進(jìn)一步減少遺留問題提供資金支持。”Jefferies公司的分析師菲利普?侯喬伊在一份報(bào)告中表示。
類似于法拉利
保時(shí)捷上市可能會(huì)大有裨益,因?yàn)槠淦放朴绊懥涂诒梢耘c法拉利(Ferrari NV)相提并論,而后者是傳統(tǒng)汽車公司中近年少有的成功案例之一。自菲亞特克萊斯勒汽車公司(Fiat Chrysler)在2015年讓法拉利單獨(dú)上市至今,其股價(jià)已經(jīng)飆升了282%。
彭博行業(yè)研究的分析師迪恩表示,僅保時(shí)捷911一項(xiàng)就可能超過法拉利的息稅折舊攤銷前利潤(rùn)。而保時(shí)捷還有一個(gè)強(qiáng)力的電動(dòng)汽車項(xiàng)目,其2019年首次推出的Taycan車型預(yù)示著,到2025年,電動(dòng)汽車將占據(jù)保時(shí)捷銷量的半壁江山。
保時(shí)捷將在今年晚些時(shí)候推出一款更寬敞的Taycan車型,并計(jì)劃,在保時(shí)捷和奧迪(Audi)共同開發(fā)的新型電動(dòng)平臺(tái)基礎(chǔ)上,于2022年推出純電動(dòng)Macan。
屢見不鮮
保時(shí)捷獨(dú)立上市的想法并不新鮮。三年前,大眾的首席財(cái)務(wù)官盧茨?梅施克在斯圖加特郊外的一家研發(fā)中心舉行的一次非正式發(fā)布會(huì)上,指出了這一想法的潛在價(jià)值,結(jié)果卻遭到了總部的斥責(zé)。
汽車業(yè)轉(zhuǎn)型的概念多年前已經(jīng)出現(xiàn),現(xiàn)今則獲得了前所未有的關(guān)注,大眾董事會(huì)內(nèi)部的反對(duì)情緒似乎也因此有所緩解。去年第四季度,歐洲售出的乘用車中約有10%是純電動(dòng)汽車。去年12月,這一比例則約為14%。
盡管如此,保時(shí)捷上市仍然是一個(gè)未知數(shù)。大眾在五年前就進(jìn)行了資產(chǎn)評(píng)估,旨在建立更為分散和靈活的報(bào)告體系,簡(jiǎn)化其龐大的集團(tuán)結(jié)構(gòu)。但迄今為止,改革的成效并不明顯。將杜卡迪(Ducati)和蘭博基尼(Lamborghini)等小眾品牌分離出來(lái)的嘗試遭到了主要利益相關(guān)者的阻止。2019年大眾卡車部門Traton SE縮減IPO規(guī)模時(shí),幾乎因?yàn)閮?nèi)部紛爭(zhēng)而脫軌。
“你可能會(huì)認(rèn)為,在公司內(nèi)部出售意大利業(yè)務(wù)會(huì)更容易,但事實(shí)并非如此。這就引出了一個(gè)問題:保時(shí)捷為什么會(huì)出現(xiàn)這種情況?!奔幽么蠡始毅y行資本市場(chǎng)(RBC Capital Markets)的分析師湯姆?納拉揚(yáng)在電話中表示。“這讓傳統(tǒng)汽車公司感到沮喪。而特斯拉卻可以通過增發(fā)股票來(lái)為公司增長(zhǎng)融資,且能夠?qū)井a(chǎn)生積極影響。”(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:Claire
Volkswagen AG’s potential listing of Porsche would be a strategic watershed moment and indicate the unprecedented upheaval of the auto industry may only just be beginning.
The German industrial giant and other incumbents have navigated a global pandemic far better than initially feared, posting robust profits and ample amounts of cash flow. Even still, their valuations are stubbornly low compared to Tesla Inc.
No automotive CEO has lamented this as openly and frequently as Herbert Diess, who routinely makes headlines by emphasizing the urgency with which VW must move to transform itself. Exploring a Porsche listing is a nod to that need and will be a litmus test of sorts for its future.
“There’s a loss of power due to the low valuation, which Diess has complained about in the past, and that’s a significant disadvantage,” said Bankhaus Metzler analyst Juergen Pieper. “An IPO of Porsche would be the silver bullet.”
VW’s preferred shares rose as much as 1% shortly after the start of regular trading in Frankfurt.
Porsche’s appeal is obvious to investors. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Michael Dean reckons the 911 maker could stand up a 110 billion-euro ($133 billion) valuation in an initial public offering, roughly 20 billion euros more than investors value VW at now.
But getting such a deal done won’t be simple because of the institutional hurdles that have stood in the way of other attempts Diess, 62, has made to shake up VW since he became CEO in 2018. Major decisions must be approved by the company’s dominant and oft-at-odds shareholders led by the Porsche and Piech family and German state of Lower Saxony, which tends to side with powerful labor unions.
“Old-Auto”
What Tesla’s meteoric rise has done, however, is send a clear signal to Diess that extreme measures must be taken to get the capital markets to come around to “old-auto” companies. VW’s review of options for Porsche comes on the heels of Daimler AG deciding to spin off its truck unit after years of management opposition to such a move. Its shares have advanced 13% since then and are hovering around a three-year high.
Even after the spinoff boost, Daimler is worth about $86 billion, almost matching the valuation of NIO Inc., which brought in roughly one-tenth the revenue last year.
Investors have taken a dim view of carmakers’ ability to keep up with new entrants unencumbered by sprawling production networks centered around combustion engines. Ford Motor Co. put this reality in stark relief last week when it announced plans to go from selling zero electric vehicles last year in Europe to only offering all-electric passenger cars by the end of the decade.
It’s clear VW will spare no expense in its efforts to catch up to Tesla, having budgeted a bigger slice of its 150 billion-euro spending budget for investment in electric cars and software in the next five years. As strong as earnings are now, they’ll be strained by all the costs associated with retiring some operations.
“VW’s balance sheet may not be fit to ensure both accelerated investments in electric and autonomous vehicles and finance an accelerated downsizing of legacy issues,” Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois said in a note.
Ferrari-Like
Proceeds from listing Porsche could go a long way, since its brand power and luxury cachet are on par with Ferrari NV, one of the rare recent success stories among traditional auto companies. Fiat Chrysler spun off the supercar maker in 2015, and the shares have soared 282% since the IPO.
The Porsche 911 alone probably exceeds Ferrari’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, according to Dean, the Bloomberg Intelligence analyst. It also has a strong electric story to tell, with the Taycan model that debuted in 2019 portending a shift to about half of sales being battery-powered by 2025.
Porsche will add a more spacious version of the Taycan to the lineup later this year, then roll out a battery-powered version of the Macan crossover in 2022 that will be based on a new dedicated EV platform being co-developed with Audi.
Nothing New
The idea of a separate listing for Porsche isn’t new as such. Three years ago, Lutz Meschke, chief financial officer of the sports-car maker, pointed out the value potential during an informal briefing at a research-and-development center outside Stuttgart, only to be reprimanded by VW headquarters.
The opposition inside VW’s boardroom appears to have eased in the wake of an industry transformation many predicted for years but is now is gaining traction at an unprecedented pace. Roughly 10% of passenger vehicles purchased in Europe in the fourth quarter were battery-electric. In December, the share was about 14%.
Still, a Porsche listing is anything but certain. VW embarked on an asset review half a decade ago, aiming for more decentralized and agile reporting lines and simplify its unwieldy conglomerate structure. Results of the reform efforts have been modest so far, with attempts to separate niche brands such as Ducati and Lamborghini undermined by key stakeholders. The downsized 2019 IPO of trucks unit Traton SE was almost derailed by internal wrangling.
“You’d think that the Italian business would have been an easier sell internally, and the fact that that didn’t happen begs the question why Porsche would happen,” RBC Capital analyst Tom Narayan said by phone. “It is frustrating for traditional car companies. Tesla can use equity currency to finance growth and grow into their backyard.”