Traton Reports Revenue Growth to $12 Billion for Q3
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Traton SE experienced an increase in revenue and operating results despite market headwinds during the third quarter of 2023, the company reported Oct. 25.
The Munich-based commercial vehicle manufacturer posted adjusted operating results of $1.01 billion for the three months ending Sept. 30. That compared with $580.50 million during the same time the previous year. Total sales revenue increased 7% to $12 billion from $11.2 billion.
“We have seen very positive developments in our business in the third quarter of this year, which is making us more optimistic for 2023 as a whole,” Traton CEO Christian Levin said. “Moreover, the Traton Group is taking a lot of steps to drive the transition to sustainable transportation forward. We have only recently set up Traton Charging Solutions, a new service entity that makes it easier for truck drivers to find the best charging location for their e-trucks.”
Traton announced during the quarter that it had opened a new battery assembly plant in Södertälje, Sweden. The facility was focused on manufacturing battery packs for the commercial battery electric vehicle market. The batteries are assembled from cells manufactured by Northvolt and are expected to last 1.5 million kilometers (about 932,000 miles).
Levin
“The recent opening of Scania’s first battery assembly plant in Södertälje, Sweden, was another historic moment for our company,” Levin said. “Electric commercial vehicles are no longer a vision of the future — they are the here and now.”
Traton credited the increased revenue to higher unit sales, a favorable market, product mix and better unit price realization driving top-line growth. Sales increased 2% year-over-year to 81,400 units from 79,800. The report further noted that earnings particularly benefited from higher utilization of production capacity and increased vehicle deliveries resulting in better fixed cost absorption, positive price mix and focus on cost management.
The earnings report noted that there was strong net cash flow during the quarter because of considerably improved operating performance. The company was able to build up $1.48 billion in working capital in the first nine months of the year. This was mainly because of increased inventories, driven by higher production volumes and tight logistic capacities. The report also noted that the working capital buildup of $211.5 million in the third quarter was less pronounced than before.
As the #transportation industry gears up for electrification, manufacturers of #commercial #BEVs face many challenges. One issue is the development of BEV batteries. These must be reevaluated adhering to 4 main factors. Read about our approach:https://t.co/dR4syCEq83 #TRATONGROUP pic.twitter.com/m6BYxfTMIB — TRATON GROUP (@TRATON_GROUP) October 17, 2023
The report said demand in general remains at a high level, but the company also has seen signs of normalization.
European operations have experienced weakening demand in some markets, economic uncertainties and financing headwinds leading to a more normalized demand situation. North American operations continued healthy demand on the back of high replacement needs. South American operations have been dealing with market weakness.
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