Member Info for Peter_van

I hate to say it but c2468sg is right. This is far from what I was expecting when I bought along with Toto Wolf in 2020 (I sold in March 2021).

I'm heading to Pebble Beach tomorrow. I'll let you know if I see anything.

C2645sg... Any idea who this Karen guy is? This article referenced in the one you cited is quite interesting and reflects the concerns I had with California dealer inventories and the reduction in force at St Athens....
https://karenable.com/catching-up-with-aston-martin-ferrari-mclaren/

It appears to me that Lawrence Stroll is on a path to make AML a purveyor of posh handbags and expensive parfume...

Natalie Massanet, the cofounder of venture fund Imaginary, and Marigay McKee, a former Harrods and Saks Fifth Avenue executive, have been appointed independent non-executive directors at Aston Martin.

Massanet started her career in fashion working at WWD and later founded Net-a-porter in 1999. She left the company after its merger with Yoox in 2015. She was made a Dame in 2016 for her service to the fashion and retail industries. Massanet also served as chairwoman at the British Fashion Council and co-chair at Farfetch. Earlier this year she joined the board of Everlane.

McKee is the cofounder and managing partner at the female-led venture firm Fernbrook Capital Management. She started her career at Estée Lauder in Europe and later joined Harrods as the head of its beauty department. She was promoted to chief merchant officer in 2010. In 2013, McKee was named the president of Saks Fifth Avenue and relocated to New York.

United said it's ordered 270 planes -- 200 Boeing 737 Max 10s and 70 Airbus A321neos. Both are the largest variants of their respective models. None of these to my knowledge use RR engines. Is this why the shares sold off today?

Doyezee asked why I found the law suit disturbing. My supposition is that AML is not the only party suffering a loss here regardless of how valid their claims may be. The doctors seem to be heavily invested in Aston Martin St.Gallen in Switzerland. Just take a look at Nico Roseburg touring the place in the Valkyrie YouTube video. That's some money to build that place. According to Nico it is the largest Aston Martin dealer in the world. Not something the doctors would want to loose. AML will also have to replace those sales with cars sold off some other dealers lot if they pull the St Gallen license.

I suspect that recovery of the deposits is not the whole story here but rather an attempt to renegotiate agreements now that the mid-engine cars are soon coming to fruition. Getting into legal battles that can drag on for years may not be ideal from either a cost or time spent perspective.

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/aston-martin-sues-swiss-partner-for-keeping-10-million-in-valkyrie-deposits-163759.html
Interesting read.

I would say this is quite disturbing. I doubt AML has the right to unilateral cancelation of royalty payments after the Swiss dealer put monies into the development and still has no deliveries of finished cars.

I believe the author gives a reasonable assessment in saying "Right now, I think it’s impossible to say which course the Aston Martin share price will take."

Too bad no safety car to give the fans a better look at the DBX.

Seems like Stroll or entities he controls would qualify as qualified institutional investors so I don't see how that would be illegal. I'd rather it be Stroll than Russian oligarchs like our past president's business.
https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/qib.asp#:~:text=An%20investor%20is%20dubbed%20a%20qualified%20institutional%20buyer,to%20require%20less%20regulatory%20protection%20than%20unsophisticated%20investors.

Agree. All these articles about Moers have me thinking about getting back in. What he says he has accomplished is incredible.

That should be destocking not restocking.

Carpy, exactly. Mercedes already owns 5% and has rights to another 15%. The next logical step would be a merger.

On the other hand Moers says AML is on track for 35 to 45 percent gains in efficiency in manufacturing. This combined with build to order and the restocking not only of vehicles, but of work in progress and service parts and you can see a surprising increase in profit margin.

With better margins AML should be able to refinance debt at a better rate.

Carpy, I in no way intended to demean you and I don't think that is C26's game either. I think you understand that customer deposits are NOT sales and while they do contribute to positive cash flow it is a slippery slope if an organization uses those deposits to fund operations (which AML clearly is not doing). Using those deposits results in situations like DeLorean where it all blows up in a puff if coke.

Carpy, deposits on vehicles that will be delivered in the future are not part of working capital . If I receive 100 thousand pounds deposit it goes into cash thus increasing working capital, however it also increases short term debt because I owe that customer either a vehicle or a refund so that reduces working capital and the net effect is nil.

In a recent Road & Track article it seems AML will be focused on developing their own infotainment system and becoming a tuner of AMG tuned Mercedes engines. As the inhouse V6 was still a prototype at the time of Stroll's take over it seems wise to cut ICE development costs in light of a world bent on electrification I am curious on your views on AML investing in their own infotainment system. My view is that DBX is the savior and that it is held back by a clumsy interface to it's infotainment and in turn my concern with the true uptake of DBX in the United States (where I live) and in China/Asia where I believe a long wheelbase DBX will also help sales. As it applies to DBX I don't think a more powerful engine or faster time on the Ring will improve sales in any meaningful way. Here is a quote from the R&T article...

"A common criticism of today's Aston Martins is that they feel a little too Mercedes, given their shared powertrains and last-gen electronics. Not ideal for a brand whose cars are significantly more expensive than their nearest Mercedes equivalents. For that reason, Moers has decided that rather than invest in engineering brand new powertrains, Aston Martin will develop its own infotainment system and focus on making its interiors feel distinct and luxurious."

I read the comments about all the glorious inhouse development Aston had done in the past whereas their future under Moers is to become a rebadged Mercedes. Don't they realize that the recent glorious past was built on Ford technology?

Pupper, well stated except the part about a petulant child which is uncalled for. I agree I have made my point. This is me stepping off of my soap box. Step step step...

Pardon my overly simplistic analysis, but I see sales numbers doubled from the prior year. Half of sales are DBX whereas DBX was zero last year. So Stroll's new management team has not improved results for vehicles available at the time of his initial investment. Mean while they quote sales to dealers for DBX while not addressing vehicles that may be sitting as inventory on the dealers lot. As I have stated before I sold March 11 at about the price the share is now hoping for a better Q1 result. I'm not buying back in at this level.