On March 18, Porsche announced at its 2022 press conference that all results in the 2021 fiscal year have reached record highs. Operating income reached 33.1 billion euros, an increase of 4.4 billion euros from the previous fiscal year, an increase of 15% year-on-year; sales profit of 5.3 billion euros, an increase of 27% year-on-year; and return on sales reached 16%, an increase of 1.4 percentage points over the previous fiscal year.
According to the plan, the brand will complete the IPO in the fourth quarter of 2022, with a valuation of up to $85 billion, or will become the largest IPO in automotive history; by 2030, the proportion of pure electric models in new cars is expected to exceed 80%, and achieve carbon neutrality.
New car deliveries broke the 300,000 mark for the first time
Sales data shows that Porsche delivered a total of 301,900 new cars to customers around the world in 2021, an increase of 11% year-on-year, which is also the first time that the brand's annual delivery of new cars exceeded the mark of 300,000 units, setting a record high. Among them, the best-selling models are the Macan and Cayenne, with deliveries of 88,000 units and 83,000 units, respectively.
In terms of single-market sales, the brand's deliveries increased in all sales regions around the world in 2021, with China becoming its largest single market for seven consecutive years, with new car deliveries reaching 95,671 units, up 8% year-on-year; the North American market also achieved significant growth, with deliveries of more than 70,000 units, an increase of 22% year-on-year.
Under the impact of the epidemic, the luxury brand's operating performance has also been quite impressive, with global net cash flow increasing by 1.5 billion euros to 3.7 billion euros in fiscal 2021. "This gives us the ability to make strategic investments in the company's future in a tight economic situation." Maxger, Porsche's Chief Financial Officer, said: "In the coming months, we will face serious political and economic challenges, but will still insist on achieving a return on sales of at least 15% per year in the long term. ”
In recent years, the consumption upgrade of the domestic automobile market has been accelerating, and although the overall automobile market has declined due to the impact of the epidemic, the luxury car market has grown against the trend. According to the data of the China Automobile Association, between 2018 and 2020, the sales volume of China's automobile market has declined for three consecutive years, while the luxury car market has grown year by year, and its market share has also expanded steadily, reaching 8.8%, 10.7% and 13.1% respectively.
With the in-depth promotion of electrification and intelligent transformation of the automobile market, the luxury automobile market pattern will also face a new round of reshuffle.
The electrification transformation has been accelerated across the board
"The automotive industry is undergoing perhaps the greatest transformation in history, and we are moving steadily in our operations." Obomus, Chairman of Porsche's Global Executive Board, said the brand electrification process is accelerating across the board, with electric models accounting for nearly 40% of all new cars delivered in Europe in 2021.
Sales data shows that porsche's first pure electric model, the Taycan, was delivered more than 41,000 units in 2021, an increase of more than double, and even surpassed the brand's benchmark sports car 911. This sales performance also makes it the most successful model of electrification transformation among global luxury car brands.
It is reported that Taycan's two derivative models, the Taycan GTS and taycan Cross Turismo, are also about to make their Asian debuts at the 2022 Beijing International Auto Show and start pre-sales at the same time. At that time, the brand's lineup of new energy models in the Chinese market will be expanded to 21 models.
According to Obermou, in the mid-1920s, Porsche plans to present all mid-engined 718 sports cars in pure electric form; by 2025, electric model sales are expected to account for half of the overall sales; by 2030, the proportion of pure electric vehicles in new cars is planned to reach more than 80% and achieve carbon neutrality.
To this end, the ultra-luxury brand is investing in the construction of high-end charging stations and its own charging infrastructure, and investing heavily in core technology areas such as battery systems and battery module production. The newly formed Cellforce company is focusing on the development and production of high-performance batteries, which are expected to be in series production by 2024.
The IPO will be completed in the fourth quarter
According to Maxig at its 2022 press conference, Porsche will complete its IPO in the fourth quarter of 2022. It would also make it a luxury car brand seeking an IPO, after Ferrari, Aston Martin and Volvo.
In fact, Porsche has always been the "treasure" of the Volkswagen Group. Among traditional automakers, this is almost the only brand that can keep profit margins above 15%. Of the Volkswagen Group's 8.6 million units sold in 2021, Porsche delivered only 3.5% of the 300,000 vehicles, but the profit exceeded a quarter of the Group's overall profit.
Its excellent profitability has also been highly anticipated by the capital market. According to Bloomberg's think tank, the brand's valuation is expected to reach 60 billion to 85 billion euros – a figure that is almost 80% of its parent company Volkswagen Group, 1.6 times that of BMW Group, and close to the current total market value of the three "new car-making forces" of Weilai, Xiaopeng and Ideal.
According to the Volkswagen Group, information on the progress of the relevant research will be provided at the end of the summer. "Welcome the Volkswagen Group's study on the possibility of an initial public offering of Porsche AG." Maxig said.
Industry analysts believe that the capital market values homogeneous and more focused business units, and the value of large companies is often underestimated, because the individual value of their business units or the value of sub-brands has never been reflected 1:1 in the capital market.
For Porsche, an IPO can enhance brand image and value, as well as increase corporate freedom; if the Porsche IPO goes well, Volkswagen can use the funds raised to help it go digital and transition to electric vehicles, and the two sides can still benefit from future collaborations.
Image source: Porsche