BMW targets record year after strong Q3 and first three-quarter periods

BMW has continued its strong performance well into the third quarter, posting growth in its sales volume, revenues and group earnings figures. The performance underlines the group’s achievements for the year-to-date.

Group revenues increased in Q3 by 4.5% on the back of higher sales volumes to £15,320m (€ 19,600m) compared with a year earlier. Group pre-tax profit rose by 1.2% to £1.57m (€ 2,013m) – both records.

However, group net profit was done 1.2% at £1.027m (€ 1,314m) on last year (2013: € 1,330m).  The company has blamed the result on the higher income tax expense. The operating margin (EBIT) for the group was 11.5% (2013: 10.3%).

The total number of BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce branded vehicles delivered to customers worldwide increased year-on-year by 5.8% during the three months between July and September to a new record of 509,669 units (2013: 481,657 units).

Nine-month revenues grew by 3.4% to £45,131m (€ 57,740m), with EBIT up by 15.2% to £5,431m (€ 6,949m). Pre-tax profit rose by 13.5% to £5,345m (€ 6,839m). These figures also marked new all-time highs for a first nine-month period.

Group net profit improved by 12.7% to £3,554m (€ 4,547m). The number of vehicles sold in the first nine months increased by 6.5% to a new record of 1,529,880 units (2013: 1,436,178 units). The operating margin (EBIT) for the period from January to September was 12.0% (2013: 10.8%).

“We continued to perform well in both the third quarter and over nine-month period within an increasingly challenging environment,” said Norbert Reithofer, BMW chairman.

The BMW group sold more BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brand vehicles in the reporting period than ever before in its history. Revenues of the Automotive segment rose in the period from July to September by 5.5% to £14,180m (€ 18,142m), with EBIT up 9.7% TO £1,326m (€ 1,697m).

The BMW brand held on to its pole position in the premium segment throughout the period by posting new record sales.

Sales climbed by 6.9% to 433,145 units (2013: 405,350 units) in the third quarter and by 9.1% to 1,319,492 (2013: 1,209,598 units) over the nine-month period. The best performers during the period were the 3, 4, 5 Series and the X5, each of which headed the world market in its own segment.

Sales of the BMW 3 Series in the period from January to September were down 3.5% on late year at 353,078 units (2013: 365,772 units).  However, BMW said that the coupé and convertible variants were now included as part of the 4 Series. The 4 Series has proved an instant hit with buyers since its market launch in autumn 2013, with a total of 81,876 units sold. The 5 Series also continues to sell well, with nine-month sales up by 2.8% to 278,479 units (2013: 270,902 units).

The various models of the BMW X family also sold well. Sales of the X1 edged up in the first nine months of the year by 0.2% to 116,722 units (2013: 116,451 units), while those of the BMW X3 increased by 1.8% to 116,015 (2013: 113,945).
Since its market launch in the summer, sales of the X4 have already reached 7,199. Sales of the BMW X5 jumped by 34.2% to 104,997 units (2013: 78,244).

Sales of the BMW i3 since the beginning of the year surpassed the 10,000 mark in September. In total, 10,199 units of this innovative electric vehicle were sold during the nine-month period. Following the market launch in the USA and Japan in the second quarter, the BMW i3 has also been available in China since October. 341 units of the BMW i8, launched in June, had been delivered to customers by the end of September.

The number of Mini brand vehicles sold in Q3 edged up 0.2% to 75,633 (2013: 75,482), while in the ultra-luxury segment, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars increased worldwide sales by 8% to 891 units (2013: 825) in the third quarter and by 24.3% to 2,859 (2013: 2,300) in the nine-month period.

Sales in Europe increased by 3.4% to 663,407 (2013: 641,537). Sales volumes in Germany grew by 3.2% to 198,083 units (2013: 191,889 units) and in the UK by 2.5% to 150,626 (2013: 146,913).

Since the beginning of the year, the BMW Group has sold a total of 482,718 units (2013: 422,777 units) in Asia, surpassing the previous year’s nine-month figure by 14.2%. Sales on the Chinese mainland in this period grew by 17.8% to 336,499 units (2013: 285,630 units).

The BMW Group also increased sales volume in the Americas region during the first nine months of the year, with the number of vehicles sold up 3.7% at 337,852 (2013: 325,677). Sales volumes in the USA grew by 5.2% and reached 276,491 units (2013: 262,745 units) for the nine-month period.

Based on its strong performance in the first nine months of 2014, the BMW Group is aiming to achieve new records in terms of sales volume (2013: 1,963,798 units) and Group pre-tax profit (2013: € 7,913m).

“We remain on course to achieve a significant increase in group profit before tax for the full year and to deliver more than two million vehicles during the twelve-month period,” said Reithofer.

In the current year alone, the BMW Group is launching 16 new models and various model revisions.

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