Mercedes-Benz Slashes Costs, Deferring Bonuses and Reintroducing V8s to Stem Losses
Veröffentlicht: 30.06.2026 um 06:13 Uhr, Redaktion boerse-global.de
In a move that defies the prevailing gloom around Mercedes-Benz, Jefferies has upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy, slashing its price target to €52 but still implying roughly 20% upside from current levels. Analyst Philippe Houchois argues that the automaker’s aggressive cost discipline will protect margins and keep 2026 operational targets within reach. The call comes as the shares languish near a 52-week low of €42.64, having lost nearly 30% of their value since the start of the year.
The financial toll has become starkly visible in the books. First-quarter operating profit tumbled 17% to €1.9 billion, while the adjusted return on sales in the passenger car division slipped to around 4.1% — the bottom end of the company’s own guidance. The pain is overwhelmingly centred on China, where deliveries in May plunged 35% and first-quarter sales fell 27%, hitting the high-margin S-Class and Maybach models particularly hard. A €2 billion share buyback programme that ended on 1 June has failed to stabilise the stock.
To stem the bleeding, CEO Ola Källenius is executing a sharp strategic reversal. Mercedes-Benz is slowing its exit from combustion engines and reintroducing V8 powertrains — fitted with 48-volt mild-hybrid technology — in the upcoming facelifts of the S-Class, GLE and GLS. At the same time, the automaker is scaling back its plans for electric mid-range models, betting that wealthy customers will be drawn back to traditional high?performance engines.
The cost-cutting drive has not gone unopposed. Management is negotiating a rise in weekly working hours to 40 without full wage compensation and has deferred a promised special payment until 2027. At the Bremen plant, roughly 500 workers staged an impromptu walkout on Monday in protest. The broader “Next Level Performance” efficiency programme aims to slash fixed costs and streamline administration across the group.
Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Mercedes-Benz?
Beyond the factory floor, Mercedes-Benz is looking for fresh revenue streams. It is developing branded luxury residential complexes in Dubai and Miami, hoping to deepen customer loyalty and create new earnings avenues. A separate partnership with AI specialist Liquid AI will embed artificial intelligence directly into vehicle hardware, enabling faster processing with greater data privacy and no reliance on cloud connectivity.
The upgrade from Jefferies stands out as a contrarian bet. While most of the market remains sceptical, Houchois expects the efficiency measures to deliver steady margin improvements. Analysts, however, see the car division’s second?quarter margin dropping to roughly 3.2%, though the van unit should outperform with about 8.8%. Europe and the US have proven more resilient, helped by the return of six? and eight?cylinder engines.
On the trading floor, the stock now sits at €43.41, with a relative strength index of 30.2 — deep into oversold territory. Yet the loss of support from the expired buyback programme leaves the shares vulnerable. The critical floor at €42.64 must hold; a break below that level could trigger another wave of selling. The dividend offers some comfort: €3.50 per share was paid for 2025, with analysts pencilling in roughly €3.40 for the current year.
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The coming weeks will test the narrative. Mercedes-Benz holds a pre?close call on 14 July and releases its full interim report on 28 July — the moment when investors will see whether the 2026 prognosis still holds water, and whether the pain in China has found a bottom.
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