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Renault shares rose in morning trading on Thursday after the French carmaker said it would propose raising its dividend per share to 1.85 euros ($1.99) for the financial year, up from 0. .25 euros above.
Shares listed in Paris were up 6.9% at 9:27 a.m. London time.
The company on Wednesday. reported a full-year group operating margin of 7.9%, which is at the high end of its previous guidance. The automaker reiterated its goal of reaching double-digit margins by 2030.
Group revenue rose 13% to €52.4 billion, while net profit was slightly below forecasts, Reuters reported.
The automaker is targeting a group operating margin of 7.5% or higher and free cash flow of at least €2.5 billion in 2024, up from €3 billion in 2023. The company said that will focus on its next 10 “unprecedented” vehicle launches. , in optimizing the cost structure and in accelerating its software and electric vehicle (EV) strategy.
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Renault share price.
Renault shares have gained 2% so far this year, according to LSEG data. The company posted a rally in January after abandoning plans to publicly list its new Ampere electric vehicle and software business.
Group CEO Luca de Meo told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” program on Thursday that Renault’s guidance was “relatively cautious” and described the market as “challenging.”
“I think there will be a lot of pressure on electric vehicles, a price reduction that we have already been seeing for a few months… But we are also optimistic because we will launch 10 models, basically one model every month, so we enter a cycle of very favorable product life, including electric vehicles,” he said.
“Renault shareholders have welcomed the proposal to increase the dividend and are also clearly encouraged by the progress in improving operating margins to 7.9%,” Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves, said by email. Lansdown.
“It is no secret that the situation in the electric vehicle sector is still quite difficult at the moment, and CEO Luca de Meo does not shy away from difficulties. Drivers are increasingly cost-conscious amid the winds against and competitors have been driving down prices.