Billionaire Lawrence Stroll to buy a major stake in Aston Martin,

If the deal goes ahead, and Stroll Sr buys into AM, we could see a few changes.
I thing Red Bull (Honda powered) will lose Aston Martin support, that will go to Racing Point (Mercedes powered)
It makes sense with MB having shares in Aston, and supplying engines to Racing Point.
One can even imagine Racing Point being renamed Aston Martin F1 outright, since Stroll would have part ownership in both.
Stroll Jr is not too important in this; soon or later he will stop F1 anyway.
It's only speculation on my part, I know...

 

Makes total sense.

 

"Aston Martin, eh?"

"Comes with a toque in the boot"

 

Aston makes a nice FE/F1-E type entry as well! E is coming to all. Racing, luxury or any type of vehicle. Stroll knows how to 'position' a brand.....

 

Seems more conceivable than pairing Stroll Jr with Mad Max at AM RB.

 

https://www.yahoo.com/autos/aston-martin-takeover-f1-racing-180700272.html

But last week, Autocar in the U.K. ran a report saying that Lawrence Stroll, the Canadian who owns the Racing Point Formula 1 team, is planning to form a consortium to take a major stake in Aston Martin, with the ultimate ambition of rebranding Racing Point as Aston Martin. The news broke the day before the sports-car maker was set to open its new plant in Saint Athan, Wales, where the forthcoming DBX will be produced. So after the formal speeches were over and during an RAF fly-past, Car and Driver took the opportunity to ask Aston CEO Andy Palmer for his reaction to the report.

"It's a rumor," was his succinct response. "We're a public company. I can't speculate on rumors."

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Photo credit: Aston Martin
That wasn't a no, of course, with Palmer acknowledging that U.K. stock market rules meant that Aston management would be made aware of any attempt to buy a significant stake in the company. But he also made the point that anyone seeking to make big changes to Aston Martin's business would need a controlling stake in the company, which would be hard to achieve.

"We've got two large existing shareholders," he said, "one with 34 percent and one with, I think, 27 percent. So there isn't 50 percent of our share capital in 'free float.' "

Indeed, only a quarter of Aston's share capital was offered in the IPO, with little more than that percentage trading now. The stock price rallied after the Autocar story broke, closing at the equivalent of $8.27 on Friday evening, meaning it has become more expensive for anybody who does want to take a stake; outright control would mean persuading at least one of the large shareholders to relinquish control as well.

 

Maybe Mercedes would be interested in partening with Stroll. That way both the factory and the F1 team would be their satellites, with Stroll helping with the costs.

 

A "major stake" doesn't mean the majority (50%+) of the stock, IMO, just an imprtant part of it.
If 25% are available, I would consider that as a major stake.

 

Per auto news, Aston isn’t looking for new investors.


Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app

 

I'm kinda pissed Aston have their name in F1 at all right now. They have absolutely no business being in F1 at their size. In 2018, when they were doing a lot better than 2019 it should be noted, their total revenue was only $1B and their operating income was less than $150 million. That is not the size of company that should be getting deeply involved in F1. Ferrari for comparison are about three and a half times their size and (despite their BS not really public offering) they still have FCA's checkbook to prop them up if needed. I'd love to know how much they've put into Red Bull over the last three years.

 

It's up their shareholders to decide these things, don't you think ?

 

No! It's up to me, a fan on the sideline who doesn't own any of their stock or one of their products!!! Leave the silly shareholders out of this!

 

I am not privy to their financials but there is no way the brand can be doing well , they must be bleeding money and I agree with another post in this thread , at the present they have no business being in F1 , it will not make them sell more cars . In my opinion they need more distinctive cars , they sure are beautiful but I Haven’t been able to differentiate between their models for the past 20 years and I am sure I am not in the minority.

 

Aston Martin had ups and downs all through its history, and the company had several owners.
Astons are sedate with typical British charm, nothing like the flashy Italians.
They are high performance cars, discreet and well built with their own style.
They are liked by their owners for these reasons.
I think the Newey-designed Valkyrie hypercar is a mistake; it doesn't have the DNA of a "real" Aston Martin.

 

Some time ago they raised debt at a very high rate...

 

You're not just a fan on the sideline, you're and F-chat fan on the sideline. That means you know a lot more than most. Just ask any other F-chatter!

 

https://www.planetf1.com/news/aston-martin-confirm-investor-talks/

 

I would agree - if this happens. Aston Martin needs to up its exclusivity - OR go further down market & up volume and have a more main stream brand - perhaps Lagonda as its Jag - Mercedes - Maserati sedan fighter. I would rather see an Aston Martin F-1 team then Racing Point... that makes more sense. I'm not sure of what brands Stroll owns, but think back to Bennetton days - they got huge exposure with F-1 and became a global " Young & Fun" brand. ( or maybe because I was young then..? )

the pale gray / green Aston color would look much better than current racing point colors.