On Aston Martin's Public Listing Disaster...

Aston Martin's Long Road to Nowhere

In my head an Aston Martin would be my luxury car of choice, if I had a spare £100K or so.

It's probably down to the James Bond link, but also it's a bit of a niche thing to own!

But of late, Aston Martin Lagonda's shares have taken one hell of a battering... down over 95% since they were first listed in 2018.

The company was in decline before the listing on the London Stock exchange, and the hope was its prestige brand would attract investors from around the world and kick start something of a revival, but this just hasn't happened!

A Listing Gone Bad

The latest trading update warns of "bigger losses than expected" with profits falling below the already gloomy market consensus. Analysts had forecast a £110 million loss - and the company still managed to underperform even that.

The excuses have become familiar: tough global economic conditions, Trump-era tariffs, and a cooling luxury market.

But with this kind of loss, something has clearly gone VERY wrong... possibly it's just an initial overvaluing of the company?

One rarely sees a brand so famous go so far south so quickly!

Time to Go Private?

Since Listing has been such a disaster it's difficult to see what advantages there are keeping this public structure, perhaps it would be better if the company went back to private again, sell that largely pointless F1 team of theirs and just focus on producing luxury cars for a relatively small market.