According to foreign media reports, Autoliv, the world's largest manufacturer of airbags and seat belts, set new financial goals on November 19, and plans to increase its core operating profit margin to about 12% in the next 3 to 5 years.
The company also said that they also plan to increase its annual organic growth rate by 3% -4% in the next 3-5 years, which is higher than the average growth rate of light vehicle production. Autoliv's competitors include Joyson Safety Systems and ZF.
Autoliv CEO Mikael Bratt said to foreign media: "These goals are challenging, but also very practical."
The company also stated in a statement that it expects its 2020 operating margin to improve from 2019. The company's core profit margin for 2019 is expected to be 9%.
As of 16:45 GMT on the day, Autoliv's stock price was down 1%. In the previous months, the company's stock price has risen strongly, once up to 22% since August.
Affected by declining demand and the need for car companies to increase investment in electrification and autonomous driving technology, the automotive industry is currently experiencing a trough. During the year, Autoliv has cut its 2019 growth and profit margin expectations several times.
The company said that the potential favorable factors for next year include the weakening impact of raw material costs, more organic growth brought by the expansion of market share, the initial effects of cost reduction plans, and the stabilization of the market. The disadvantages may include higher depreciation and amortization costs.
Although global auto production has fallen sharply this year, Autoliv has maintained a slight growth momentum thanks to the bankruptcy of former rival Takata. At present, Joyson Electronics has become a large shareholder of Takata through asset acquisition.
Autoliv said that as of October 2019, the company's order volume has maintained a strong growth momentum, and its estimated global order share is about 50%.
The company said that in the next 5 years, its goal is to maintain at least synchronous growth with the market, and that it hopes to increase the profit margin to about 13% after the full implementation of "ongoing and planned strategic measures".