By Giulio Piovaccari
MILAN, July 30 (Reuters) - Stellantis missed expectations for quarterly operating income, sending its shares lower, as investors seek stronger evidence that CEO Antonio Filosa's turnaround of the Jeep maker is paying off.
The Franco-Italian group posted second-quarter adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) of €773 million ($884 million) on Thursday, boosted by strong North American revenue.
That was more than triple the figure a year earlier but was well short of the €914
million expected by analysts in a Reuters poll.
MARGIN DISAPPOINTS ANALYSTS
Citi analysts said the adjusted operating income margin remained low at 1.8% and pointed to negative pricing in Europe, higher administrative and R&D costs, an unfavourable currency swing and tariffs.
The carmaker's Milan-listed shares were down 4.3% at €5.06 by 0950 GMT, among Europe's worst-performing stocks, after falling as much as 8% in early trading.
Filosa, who took the helm in June last year, has focused on restoring volumes and regaining market share after a prolonged downturn, betting that would lay the groundwork for a broader turnaround.
Stellantis booked about €22 billion of charges in February after scaling back its electrification ambitions and the shares hit a record low of €4.59 this month, having lost about 40% of their value since Filosa became CEO.
NORTH AMERICA UP, EUROPE FLAT
Stellantis joins fellow European automakers Volkswagen and BMW in reporting disappointing quarterly results, pressured by Chinese competition, tariffs and rising costs.
Its second-quarter revenue rose 13% year on year to €43.48 billion, with a 32% increase in North America on strength in models including its Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Ram 1500 truck.
Fabio Caldato, a fund manager at Stellantis investor AcomeA Sgr, said North American revenue performance was good but supported by rising dealer inventories.
"Looking beyond the headline figure, the result is a bit more debatable," he said. "They need to clean things up there before they can really sell new higher-margin models."
Revenue in Europe, the automaker's other main market, was flat in the quarter.
STELLANTIS STANDS BY FULL-YEAR OUTLOOK
The company reaffirmed its full-year forecasts, including revenue growth in a mid-single-digit percentage and a low-single-digit adjusted operating income margin. Positive industrial free cash flow is not expected until next year.
Stellantis forecast U.S. tariff costs of €1 billion to €1.2 billion this year.
($1 = 0.8744 euros)
(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari in Milan and Gilles Guillaume in ParisWriting by Giulio PiovaccariEditing by Alvise Armellini, Josephine Mason and David Goodman)
