Londýn – The merger between Peugeot S.A. (“Groupe PSA”) and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (“FCA”) (NYSE: FCAU / MTA: FCA) that will lead the path to the creation of Stellantis N.V. (“Stellantis”), became effective today.
As previously announced, Stellantis’s common shares will begin trading on Euronext in Paris and the Mercato Telematico Azionario in Milan on Monday, January 18, 2021, and on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday, January 19, 2021, in each case under the ticker symbol “STLA”.
Vztahy s investory:
Pro další informace:
Karine Douet: +33 6 61 64 03 83
karine.douet@mpsa.com
Valérie Gillot: +33 6 83 92 92 96
valerie.gillot@mpsa.com
O FCA
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) je globální automobilka, která navrhuje, konstruuje, vyrábí a prodává vozidla řady zajímavých značek, včetně Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Fiat Professional, Jeep®, Lancia, Ram a Maserati. Dále prodává díly a služby pod názvem Mopar a působí v sektorech komponentů a výrobních systémů pod značkami Comau a Teksid. FCA zaměstnává téměř 200,000 XNUMX lidí po celém světě. Více informací o FCA naleznete na www.fcagroup.com
O Groupe PSA
Groupe PSA designs unique automotive experiences and delivers mobility solutions to meet all customer expectations. The Group has five car brands, Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Opel and Vauxhall and provides a wide array of mobility and smart services under the Free2Move brand. Its ‘Push to Pass’ strategic plan represents a first step towards the achievement of the Group’s vision to be “a global carmaker with cuttingedge efficiency and a leading mobility provider sustaining lifetime customer relationships”. An early innovator in the field of autonomous and connected cars, Groupe PSA is also involved in financing activities through Banque PSA Finance and in automotive equipment via Faurecia.
VÝHLEDY NA VÝHLED VE VÍCE
Toto sdělení obsahuje výhledová prohlášení. Tato výhledová prohlášení zahrnují zejména prohlášení týkající se budoucí finanční výkonnosti a očekávání FCA a PSA (dále jen „strany“) ohledně dosažení určitých cílených metrik k jakémukoli datu v budoucnu nebo pro jakékoli budoucí období jsou výhledová prohlášení. Tato prohlášení mohou obsahovat výrazy jako „může“, „bude“, „očekávat“, „mohou“, „měl by“, „zamýšlím“, „odhaduji“, „předvídat“, „věřím“, „zůstat“, „na cestě“. ““, „design“, „cíl“, „cíl“, „cíl“, „prognóza“, „projekce“, „výhled“, „vyhlídky“, „plán“ nebo podobné výrazy. Výhledová prohlášení nejsou zárukou budoucí výkonnosti. Spíše jsou založeny na současném stavu znalostí smluvních stran, budoucích očekáváních a projekcích budoucích událostí a svou povahou podléhají přirozeným rizikům a nejistotám. Týkají se událostí a závisí na okolnostech, které mohou nebo nemusí nastat nebo existovat v budoucnu, a jako takové by se na ně nemělo příliš spoléhat.
Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability of PSA and FCA and/or the combined group resulting from the proposed transaction (together with the Parties, the “Companies”) to launch new products successfully and to maintain vehicle shipment volumes; changes in the global financial markets, general economic environment and changes in demand for automotive products, which is subject to cyclicality; changes in local economic and political conditions, changes in trade policy and the imposition of global and regional tariffs or tariffs targeted to the automotive industry, the enactment of tax reforms or other changes in tax laws and regulations; the Companies’ ability to expand certain of their brands globally; the Companies’ ability to offer innovative, attractive products; the Companies’ ability to develop, manufacture and sell vehicles with advanced features including enhanced electrification, connectivity and autonomous-driving characteristics; various types of claims, lawsuits, governmental investigations and other contingencies, including product liability and warranty claims and environmental claims, investigations and lawsuits; material operating expenditures in relation to compliance with environmental, health and safety regulations; the intense level of competition in the automotive industry, which may increase due to consolidation; exposure to shortfalls in the funding of the Parties’ defined benefit pension plans; the ability to provide or arrange for access to adequate financing for dealers and retail customers and associated risks related to the establishment and operations of financial services companies; the ability to access funding to execute the Companies’ business plans and improve their businesses, financial condition and results of operations; a significant malfunction, disruption or security breach compromising information technology systems or the electronic control systems contained in the Companies’ vehicles; the Companies’ ability to realize anticipated benefits from joint venture arrangements; disruptions arising from political, social and economic instability; risks associated with our relationships with employees, dealers and suppliers; increases in costs, disruptions of supply or shortages of raw materials; developments in labor and industrial relations and developments in applicable labor laws; exchange rate fluctuations, interest rate changes, credit risk and other market risks; political and civil unrest; earthquakes or other disasters; uncertainties as to whether the proposed business combination discussed in this document will be consummated or as to the timing thereof; the risk that the announcement of the proposed business combination may make it more difficult for the Parties to establish or maintain relationships with their employees, suppliers and other business partners or governmental entities; the risk that the businesses of the Parties will be adversely impacted during the pendency of the proposed business combination; risks related to the regulatory approvals necessary for the combination; the risk that the operations of PSA and FCA will not be integrated successfully and other risks and uncertainties.
Any forward-looking statements contained in this communication speak only as of the date of this document and the Parties disclaim any obligation to update or revise publicly forward-looking statements. Further information concerning the Parties and their businesses, including factors that could materially affect the Parties’ financial results, are included in FCA’s reports and filings with the SEC (including the registration statement on Form F-4 filed with the SEC on July 24, 2020, as amended, which was declared effective on November 20,2020), the AFM and CONSOB and PSA’s filings with the AMF.
It’s official. After more than a year of negotiations, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and French auto giant PSA have completed their merger, combining into a new company named … Stellantis.
You may not recognize the new name, but chances are good you know of Stellantis’ many global automotive brands, including Alfa-Romeo, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram as well as names more familiar in other markets: Citroën, Peugeot, and Opel. With annual sales of approximately eight million vehicles and 400,000 employees, the combined entity becomes the fourth-largest global automaker by volume.
The merged company will be headed by PSA CEO Carlos Tavares, who’s no stranger to the American market. The late Sergio Marchionne, who led the merger of Fiat and Chrysler but died in 2018, certainly left a huge mark on the American market, and Tavares would like to have similar impact.
Tavares spent two years (2009 to 2011) heading North American operations for Nissan, and had a major role in introducing the Leaf electric car here before running afoul of the formidable Carlos Ghosn. It’s clear that Tavares, who’s fluent in English, has been itching to get PSA back into North America, a market where it has been conspicuously absent since 1991.
PSA stands for Peugeot Société Anonyme. The company is a big global player with a strong presence in Africa, Europe and China, but to most U.S. consumers, the company’s brands are definitely “Anonyme.”
The core PSA brands, Peugeot and Citroën, both have diehard fans from when they were sold in the USA, but that was decades ago. Citroën abandoned the states in 1974 and Peugeot followed in 1991, a victim of declining sales and the Gulf War recession. Germany’s Opel, purchased from GM in 2017, has provided models for Buick and Saturn in recent years but hasn’t been directly sold in the USA since 1975.
FCA’s U.S. lineup has been in flux too. Jeeps, Ram Trucks, and the Chrysler Pacifica minivan are solid sellers, as are some of Dodge’s performance cars. But the only other Chrysler vehicle is the aging 300 sedan and Fiat has dwindled to a single model, the small 500x crossover, for 2021.
Could Tavares convince Americans to buy Peugeots and Citroëns? Might that move come at the expense of Fiat and Chrysler?
It’s too early to tell, but Tavares focused on the existing North American brands at his first press conference following the announcement of the merger. “It is possibly more important to focus on the profitable growth of those brands rather than bringing a new brand on top of what already exists, but we’ll see in the future,” Tavares said.
Obviously, the merger is brand new, with many details to be worked out. “We still don’t know how it will unfold,” said Michelle Krebs, director of automotive relations at AutoTrader.com. “There weren’t really any surprises in the finalization.”
PSA opened a new North American headquarters in Atlanta in 2017 and launched a car-sharing service, Free2Move, a year later. Tavares said last year he wanted to sell Peugeot cars in the U.S, reintroducing the brand via a 10-year plan.
PSA North America’s Larry Dominique said Peugeot was the “best fit” for the U.S. in the company’s lineup, based in part on consumer awareness—though he may be overestimating how many people remember Peter Falk’s Peugeot-driving detective, Columbo.
There is skepticism that America’s crowded and essentially flat auto market actually needs another product line. “My guess is that we may never see another Peugeot-branded vehicle in the U.S.,” said Sam Abuelsamid, principal analyst for e-mobility at Guidehouse Insights. He thinks it more likely that PSA’s platforms will underpin cars from existing U.S. brand names, such as Jeep. “The Compass and Renegade could go over to electrified PSA platforms,” he said.
FCA has been an also-ran in electrification, but that is likely to change. Stellantis is planning to offer plug-in hybrid versions of the Wrangler, Grand Cherokee and Wagoneer, and now there’s some synergy. Stellantis has 29 electrified models in its portfolio, with 10 in the pipeline, the company said in a release. In 2018, PSA also said it wanted to have a 100% electric range by 2025.
Abuelsamid also said that the Chrysler nameplate could be phased out, with the Pacifica minivan becoming a Jeep or Ram. In Europe, some PSA brands could also disappear, he said. “I expect there to be some culling,” he said. “The plants in Europe are running at around 50% capacity.” One possible casualty could be the British brand Vauxhall, which builds right-hand drive versions of Opels. One way Tavares helped PSA get back to profitability was cutting product lines.
PSA and FCA have said they could find savings of more than $6 billion in the merged entity, and without closing any plants. Changes in the American market “won’t happen immediately,” Abuelsamid said. FCA’s Mike Manley remains in charge of North American operations at Stellantis.
Jessica Caldwell, executive director of Insights at Edmunds, also sees a trimmer operation ahead. “As a new corporation, Stellantis has the best chance of long-term success if it begins to consolidate some of its business, which is not always easy for a global company,” she said. “Although it has a wide array of brands, Stellantis might look to trim some fat in order to free up resources to work on electrified and autonomous technology.”
Caldwell thinks automotive brand names will become less important going forward.
“They can keep the ones with the most equity and work on consolidating or shuttering the rest,” she said. It’s possible that Tavares, like GM’s Bob Lutz, will make some branding decisions based on the heart rather than the head. He definitely has “car guy” tendencies, has taken part in vintage car racing, and has classic Peugeots in his garage.
