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(Bloomberg) — Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings Plc’s (AML.L) Executive Chairman Lawrence Stroll said he would be open to taking the luxury carmaker private in future after announcing a plan to inject more funds.
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The company is “severely undervalued” and its stock market valuation of around £650 million is a “joke,” Stroll said, adding that he may consider taking Aston Martin private if it doesn’t improve over time.
“Could it be something for the future? Potentially, yes. Never say never. Is it on my radar screen to do in the next fortnight? No, but never say never,” he said in an interview.
Stroll’s consortium has invested more than £600 million in the British automaker since rescuing it in 2020. The debt-laden company has required repeated capital raises and is now undergoing a fresh turnaround attempt led by Chief Executive Officer Adrian Hallmark, a former Bentley Motors boss.
Aston Martin also aims to sell its stake in the Formula One team that bears its name to raise at least £74 million, it said Monday. Stroll said he plans to attract a new strategic investor to the team, which he controls separately.
US firms HPS Investment Partners and Accel Partners invested in the team last year at a £1.8 billion enterprise value, Stroll said. His plan is to match or build on that valuation. “Happily with the incoming demand, we could be very picky on who to sell this percentage to,” Stroll said.
Aston Martin also lowered its volume guidance for 2025, citing its initial analysis of the additional tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump. The company now expects “modest growth,” having previously targeted mid-single digit percentage growth. “It’s not catastrophic, it’s just annoying,” Hallmark said on the call.
Aston Martin’s shares rose as much as 14% on Monday, but they’re still down 35% this year.
Hallmark has already cut the profit goal for 2025 and announced plans to cut 170 staff, about 5% of its workforce. Aston Martin still aims to generate positive free cash flow in the second half of this year after failing to do so in 2024.