Daimler AG, which manufactures premium cars and commercial vehicles and currently the third-largest luxury cars maker in the world, remains certain about its 2014 forecast after it managed to sell more vehicles during the first quarter of the financial year in comparison with the same period a year earlier.
The Chief Executive Officer of Daimler AG – Mr. Dieter Zetsche made an official statement, explaining that the expansion of companys Mercedes-Benz brand and its assortment offered to customers is able to provide the company with the opportunity to outperform sales growth of its competitors. Mr. Zetsche also shared his belief that the expansion will be beneficial for “significantly” boosting Daimler AGs 2014 operating profit.
Daimler Chief Executive Officers statement comes just before the annual meeting of the companys shareholders. As reported by Bloomberg, Mr. Zetsche said: “Our determination is paying off.” He added that the company is “seeking to gain new customers by entering new segments for Mercedes-Benz”. Part of his statement was also cited by the Wall Street Journal: “We are beginning 2014 at the same pace with which we finished 2013.”
When it comes to premium-auto deliveries, the company is making an attempt to outstrip results of Bayerische Motoren Werke AG and Audi AG by planning the release of about 30 new models of vehicles, almost the half of which having no predecessor. The company also plans to invest 21.8 billion euros (30 billion dollars) in further development of its vehicles and increasing the production capacity within a period of two years.
Sales of Daimlers Mercedes-Benz brand were reported to have increased 13% in March 2014, reaching 158 523 cars and sport-utility vehicles. This is a record number of vehicles sold by the brand and a result of increased demand for its S-Class sedan model and some compact models such as the GLA SUV.
According to Financial Times, shares of Daimler AG fell 0.06% to 69.90 EUR in Frankfurt today, while companys one-year return rate was 71.05%. The same media reported that the 31 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Daimler AG have a median target of 75.00, with a high estimate of 86.00 and a low estimate of 55.00. The median estimate represents a 7.30% increase from the last price of 69.90.
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