Tuesday, German auto maker Daimler AG (DAI) reported a decline in profit for the third quarter, reflecting a drop in revenues from all its business segments. Looking ahead, Daimler said general economic developments and its effect on dealerships and suppliers could have an impact on fourth quarter earnings.
Daimler's quarterly net profit declined 74% to €56 million from €213 million a year earlier. Earnings per share was €0.04, down 81% from €0.21 in the quarter a year ago.
Earnings before income tax dropped 27% to €470 million from €648 million in the same period last year. A gain of €48 million related to valuation of Chrysler-related assets was recognized in the third quarter.
Revenues for the third quarter declined 21% to €19.31 billion from €24.47 billion in the prior year period, impacted by a 26% drop in unit sales. Including exchange-rate effects, revenue fell 22%.
In the preceding quarter, the Stuttgart, Germany-based auto giant reported a net loss of €1.06 billion or €0.99 per share on revenues of €19.6 billion.
During the third quarter, Daimler sold 386.46 thousand units, down 26% from 522.52 thousand units sold in the year-ago period, mainly on a decline in commercial vehicles sales.
In commercial vehicles segment, while Daimler trucks sales declined by 46% to 66.07 thousand from 122.68 thousand in the prior year period, Mercedes-Benz vans sold during the quarter were 40.12 thousand units, a decline of 45% from 73.24 thousand vans sold a year earlier. Daimler buses sold were also down to 8.35 thousand, a 23% drop from 10.81 thousand sold in the same period last year.
Mercedes-Benz cars sold during the quarter were down 14% to 271.92 thousand from 315.80 thousand last year. The division achieved its strongest month of the year in September after the seasonally weaker summer months of July and August.
For the nine-month period, net loss was €2.29 million compared with a net profit of €2.94 million a year earlier. Loss per share was €2.30 compared with earnings per share of €2.94 in the year-ago period. Revenues slumped to €57.60 million from €74.47 million in the same period last year. Group's sales were down by 30% to 1.11 million units from 1.59 million units for the year-ago period.
Looking ahead, the company said after returning to profitability in the third quarter of 2009, it anticipates positive EBIT from its ongoing business also in the fourth quarter. Daimler, however, said general economic developments and their effects on dealerships and suppliers could lead to an impact on fourth-quarter earnings.
Daimler anticipates significant decreases in unit sales and revenue for full-year 2009, compared to sales of 2.1 million vehicles or €95.9 billion in 2008.
Daimler expects it will exceed the original target savings of €4 billion in full year 2009 on measures taken to cut costs and avoidance of additional expenditure.
Mercedes-Benz Cars business is indicated to improve in the last quarter of the year. However, Daimler said overall, the division's unit sales will be lower in 2009 as compared to the prior year. The company sees lower volumes in the markets of the United States, Western Europe and Japan, and expects to be stabilized in part with growth in the emerging markets.
DAI is currently trading at $51.41, down $1.97 or 3.96% on volumes of 801 thousand on NYSE.
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