Porsche Crashes: 96% Profit Plunge Triggers €1B Quarterly Loss – What’s Next?
Why Profits Cratered: Apart from tariffs, Porsche cited a sudden about-face on its EV strategy. In September the company scaled back its electrification plan, shelving plans for a proprietary battery factory and slowing EV projects. These moves triggered one-time charges and raised doubt about future growth. CEO Blume had to admit that Porsche’s “shift to electric vehicles” is slowing, at a time when rivals are racing aheadreuters.com. At the same time, luxury buyers in China – a key market – are tightening their belts; CFO Breckner noted “general market conditions will not improve in the foreseeable future”reuters.com. Leader’s Take: CFO Breckner struck a cautiously hopeful tone. He said that 2025 should mark the bottom of the cycle, with profits set to bounce back in 2026. “We expect 2025 to be the trough that precedes a noticeable improvement for Porsche from 2026 onwards,” he told analystsreuters.com. Porsche is even holding firm to its full-year guidance: it still predicts up to ~2% return on sales in 2025, down from 14% in 2024reuters.com. Breckner also warned that proposed U.S. price hikes would lift U.S. sales prices in coming months, and that the 2025 dividend will be “significantly” lower than the €2.31 paid last