Daimler Valued at Just Over Half BMW’s Worth

Investors believe that Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz Cars unit is worth about half as much as rival BMW AG's luxury vehicle departments, Bloomberg News reports.

The news service notes that financial markets give BMW a market capitalization (share price multiplied by outstanding shares) of €45 billion ($58.3 billion). Daimler's market cap is €42.2 billion ($54.7 billion), or about €25 billion ($32.4 billion) for the luxury vehicle unit after the company's truck and van units are subtracted.

Since CEO Dieter Zetsche took charge of both Daimler and the Mercedes car unit in 2006, Daimler shares have fallen about 10% to €39.55 ($51.28) on Friday. BMW stock has surged 89% in that period to €70.50 ($91.41).

The diverging share prices reflect BMW's strong global growth and Mercedes' relatively slow expansion in such key markets as China, analysts say. They also tell Bloomberg that weakness in Mercedes stock signals waning investor confidence in Zetsche as the company falls behind in attaining its profitability goals.