Aston Martin Plans To Sell Its Formula One Team
Aston Martin, the iconic British luxury carmaker, is preparing to offload its Formula One investment and may soon bid farewell to the London Stock Exchange altogether.
Key Points
- The British luxury automaker is divesting its 4.6% stake in the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team, raising $146 million in much-needed capital.
- Following a recent profit warning and steep share price decline, analysts suggest Aston Martin may be considering going private to simplify its ownership structure and reduce public market pressures.
- Despite economic challenges, Aston Martin’s new models—like the Vantage, DB12, and DBX SUV—have been well-received, with ultra-luxury customers providing some buffer against broader market volatility.
The company announced it has signed a binding letter of intent to sell its minority stake in the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team. Though it owns just 4.6% of the F1 team, the planned $146 million sale is expected to provide a much-needed windfall to the struggling automaker.
The announcement follows a profit warning issued by Aston Martin. Company leadership hopes to merely break even in 2025, as it faces the double-edged sword of U.S. tariffs and economic instability in China. The warning triggered an immediate seven percent clawback of the stock price in a single day.
Since its 2018 IPO debut on the London Stock Exchange, Aston Martin's public journey has been far from smooth. Initially valued at almost $6 billion with a share price of $25.30, the brand now sees its stock trading at just 94 cents—reflecting a market valuation of just $1.01 billion. Some analysts are now speculating the company could be planning to pull the stock from the exchange and go private.
Delisting the stock could simplify the ownership structure and reduce the administrative and financial burdens of public listing. It could also improve the company's agility while attracting solid, long-term partners.
Despite its financial challenges, Aston Martin’s current model lineup is arguably the strongest it’s been in decades. The recently launched Vantage, DB12, and incoming Vanquish are all attractive and seem to have generated strong reviews among automotive media. The DBX SUV now accounts for nearly half of the company’s total sales volume.
The race team, on the other hand, has been struggling since its strong debut a few years ago—it now finds itself firmly in the midfield, if not closer to the back, despite Fernando Alonso's strong showing in the last race. Despite the sale, the Aston Martin name is expected to stick around thanks to a long-term commercial agreement.
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An experienced automotive storyteller and accomplished photographer known for engaging and insightful content. Michael also brings a wealth of technical knowledge—he was part of the Ford GT program at Multimatic, oversaw a fleet of Audi TCR race cars, ziptied Lamborghini Super Trofeo cars back together, been over the wall during the Rolex 24, and worked in the intense world of IndyCar.
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In 1987 Automobili Lamborghini was bought for 25 million dollars by Chrysler. The Equivalent of about 70 million today. Now It's worth billions. Ford purchased 75% of Aston Martin in 1987 for an undisclosed amount. I understand the companies have grown in technology and even manpower, however the growth trajectory is still pretty humbling. Ford sold the majority of their stake in 1994 for about 925 million.
Aston Martin has grown exponentially since the 1980s as well as a carmaker and a brand. I do wonder if Jim Farley ever ponders what if Ford held onto Aston Martin instead of offloading it as excess weight or a quick cash out. The transition from the 1980s models to the DB7 marked the beginning of quite a new era for the company. If Ford was able to hold out they could have sold a minority stake for billions and. still retained a solid majority.
Considering the brand's prestige and potential, a shift to private ownership would be a wise move today. Not to mention the valuation. A small group of billionaire car guys could snatched it up and return it to focus on products and long term growth/stability rather than concentrating entirely on shareholder value. The name is there, the product is there, the processes and procedures need to be refined to enable the ability to endure. If they were to be bought out by a larger automotive company it would probably go as they usually do. Invest a pile of money, bump up valuation a bit, then sell it off to pad the bottom line for shareholders.
Let's hope Ford never again gets it's hands on any worthwhile company.
I would hate to see Aston Martin get savaged by Ford bean counters who would make the cars even more overpriced while at the same time destroying the heritage, quality, and reliability of such a venerable marque.