BMW AG share price hits record level, expects a significant pretax profit growth in 2014

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, which is currently known as the largest luxury cars manufacturer in the world, announced it is expecting “significant” profit growth this year due to the fact that some of its new and upgraded vehicle models seem to be able to reach record sales. Shares rallied to an all-time record.

The German company also said that its forecasts depend on political and economic stability. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, Mr. Norbert Reithofer, who is the current Chief Executive Officer of the company, said: “Just like you, we are monitoring the political and economic developments in the world. Everything is fragile. Things could change at any moment.”

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG made an official statement today. It shared its beliefs that the 2014 pretax profit will be larger than the one last year, which amounted to 7.91 billion euros (11 billion dollars). The company expects its sales to increase during the second half of the year.

Chief Executive Officer Norbert Reithofer said at a press conference statement, which was cited by Bloomberg: “We will remain the world’s leading premium car company. We remain very confident about the business year 2014,” with sales volumes set for a “significant increase”. Mr. Reithofer also said: “The continuous investment in innovations ensures our long-term success. We will not be looking in the rear-view mirror but focusing on the road ahead.”

A total of 1.96 million vehicles were sold by Bayerische Motoren Werke AG in 2013, which is a 6.4% jump from the numbers in 2012. The sales achieved by the company last year amounted to 76 billion euros (105.79 billion dollars). BWM also managed to generate a record net profit last year. It increased by 4.5% and reached 5.34 billion euros.

Friedrich Eichiner, who is the Chief Financial Officer of the automotive group, made a statement, which was cited by the Wall Street Journal: “A stable upward trend is expected in European automobile markets. Should this not happen it could influence the development of our business.”

As reported by Bloomberg, one of the analysts, who work for Benkhaus Metzler – Juergen Pieper commented BWMs forecast, saying: “BWM gave a surprisingly positive outlook. They seem to be getting out of a phase of stagnation quicker than expected.”

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG surged by 7.45% in Frankfurt by 13:18 GMT to trade at 86.73 euros, marking a one-year change of +25.39%. Shares rose to 87.16 euros earlier in the session, hitting the highest price of the company on record. The luxury car maker is valued at 51.94 billion euros. According to the Financial Times, the 32 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Bayerische Motoren Werke AG have a median target of 85.00 euros, with a high estimate of 120.00 euros and a low estimate of 63.00 euros. The median estimate represents a 5.30% increase from previous close of 80.72 euros.