Maserati to drive margins higher before spin-off talk
Discount is not a word in our vocabulary, says CEO of luxury brand
Maserati aims to increase its margin on operating profit to 15% in the next 12 months and sees a longer term target of 20% by the end of this decade, according to the CEO of the Stellantis luxury brand.
The margin stood at 8.7% last year, though it topped 10% in the second half.
Davide Grasso, who took charge of Maserati in 2019, said once that target was met, parent company Stellantis could start evaluating in earnest a spin-off of the 109-year old carmaker.
Stellantis CFO Richard Palmer said in November that Maserati could be a standalone business in the future, but that was not going to happen any time soon.
Maserati, an autonomous unit within Stellantis, posted a €201m (R4bn) adjusted operating profit last year after returning to the black in 2021.
Grasso said a focus on quality, giving the brand strong pricing power, would help Maserati to further boost its profitability.
Its first intermediate margin target of 15% was to be met “more or less by the end of first quarter of 2024”.
“But we have 20% as our polar star,” he said, adding he aimed to book margin improvements every year, so ideally reaching the 20% target by 2029/2030 “if we do the right things”.
He said that goal could be hit even earlier possibly.
Porsche has also set a longterm operating margin goal of 20%.
For Ferrari, the margin already runs well above the 20% threshold.
Grasso said the number of Maserati models now based on Levante and Grecale SUVs, the MC20 sports car, GranTurismo grand tourer (GT) and Quattroporte luxury sedan did not need to be expanded.
Maserati had a marginbased and not a volume-based strategy, he said.
“We’ll never trim our prices to reach certain volume targets.
“Discount is not a word in our vocabulary.”
Maserati sold 25,900 cars last year.
The starting prices for the Levante and Grecale SUVs are about €97,000 (R1.9m) and €76,000 (R1.5m).
Asked whether reaching the margin goals would mark the right moment for parent group Stellantis to assess a spin-off, Grasso said: “Let’s meet the 20% target, then we’ll think about it.”
Maserati is now launching its new Gran Turismo grand tourer in combustion engine and fully electric (BEV) versions, with an entry price of about €182,000 (R3.6m).
It has promised a BEV version would be available for all models in its range by 2025, and that it would become an electric-only brand by 2030. “Maybe earlier,” Grasso said. The carmaker this year will also issue a BEV version of the Grecale SUV launched last year.
Next year the brand will launch a limited-series, 700horse power, track-only hypercar, internally dubbed Project24.
Based on the MC20, it will cost €1m (R19.9m) and only 62 will be produced.
“It’s sold out already,” Grasso said.