Aston Martin, the British maker of the iconic '007' car, recently announced that it plans to go public. The announcement seems to be part of a general, trendy comeback of British goods over the past year. The company is due to make a final decision to go ahead with the public offering next month, along with plans to provide additional information about the potential listing mid-September.
If they decide to go public, Aston Martin will be valued at over $6 billion. Factors that have contributed to such a value include the company's focus on luxury, high-end products. Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer asserts that "Aston Martin...has been transformed into a luxury business focused on creating the world's most beautiful high-performance cars. This transformation has delivered significant growth in revenues, unit volumes and profitability." In 2017 alone, Aston Martin made $1.1 billion in revenue from selling over 5,000 cars. In doing so, the company not only experienced an increase of 50% from the previous year but achieved its highest profit in nine years. The company plans to produce approximately 7,300 cars in 2018, and about 9,300 cars in 2020.
The company also plans to offer 25% of its total shares to investors. Invest Industrial of Italy and Investment Dar of Kuwait, two of Aston Martin's owners, are planning to offer a portion of their current stakes in the company. Daimler AG (ETR: DAI), the Mercedez-Benz manufacturer and significant investor in Aston Martin, is reportedly maintaining its 4.9% holding in the company.
Aston Martin's consideration of a public offering holds great significance given a unstable past characterized by seven bouts of bankruptcy and frequent changes in ownership. Given the recent political uncertainty regarding Brexit, Aston Martin's public offering may still appeal to company investors and collectible and luxury auto-buyers worldwide. In a regulatory document, the company noted that its biggest source of growth moving forward will be found in Asia.
Until then, the luxury automaker has its sights set on creating upscale cars that mirror those used by the fictional agent Bond. Likewise, they will place a larger focus on Lagonda, a luxury line that offers electric SUVs and sedans.