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Which Car Maker Makes the Most Money?

Jiří Staník
February 28, 2019

Ferrari earned EUR 63,752 per car sold, five times more than Porsche. On the other hand, Volkswagen created the biggest operating profit in 2017 among car manufacturers.

Toyota was the most valuable automotive Company in the world in 2017 while Tesla remains a different species in the pond.

Ferrari produced the highest net profit per car sold in 2017, five times more than the next in line -  Porsche AG. 

Ferrari made a net profit of EUR 63,752, for each car sold, up 28.1% compared to the previous year. When compared with the company's price per vehicle, Ferrari sold each car for an average of EUR 406,870 in 2017.

Ferrari made EBITDA of EUR 1,036 mil in 2017, which translates into an EBITDA margin of 30.3%, again the highest in the industry. Porsche generated an EBITDA margin of 27.3% while Volkswagen Group grossed 15.6% in 2017.

The margin is just one thing, however. In absolute terms, Volkswagen generated the biggest operating profit in 2017, with an EBITDA of more than EUR 35 bil:

Being the most profitable does not automatically mean being the most valuable on the market. Thanks partly to its emmissions scandal, Volkswagen was only the third largest car manufacturer in terms of market capitalization in 2017. Toyota has ended the year 2017 as the most valuable car producer with a market capitalization of more than USD 180 bil.

And then, there is Tesla, a completely different species in the automotive pond. Despite losing USD 4,000 per car sold in 2018, the Company is now worth USD 50 bil, almost as much as Ford for example:

You can see all the above-mentioned indicators and charts on our webpage, or you can download a special Statistical dossier on the Global Car Producers in the reports section.

Jiří Staník
Jiří Staník
CEO & Founder
He spent nearly two decades analysing companies in the region of Central and Eastern Europe, primarily in the area of financial services. Jiri built and headed Equity Research at Wood & Company, a Central European brokerage firm, and got several awards (such as The Best Equity Research or The Best Analyst by Euromoney).