Porsche SE posts €2.8 billion loss after writing down Volkswagen investment
Key Facts
Porsche SE said on November 10 that group net income after tax was negative €2.783 billion in the first nine months of 2026, compared with a profit of €1.240 billion in the same period of 2025. The company attributed the swing to a non-cash write-down of the book value of its investment in Volkswagen AG. The figure reflects an accounting impact on the value of the holding, while adjusted net income after tax remained positive. It was €930 million, compared with €1.594 billion a year earlier. The results therefore showed an annual decline in the adjusted measure alongside the reported loss following the write-down.
The contributions of the two listed companies in Porsche SE's accounts show contrasting performances over the period. Volkswagen's contribution, calculated using the equity method, was €0.8 billion in the first nine months of 2026, down from €1.7 billion in the same period of 2025. By contrast, Porsche AG's contribution rose to €0.2 billion from €0.1 billion. The write-down that Porsche SE said drove the loss was on its investment in Volkswagen AG. The company did not attribute that write-down to Porsche AG, nor did it identify operational challenges or margin pressure as its direct causes.
Porsche SE Chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch said Volkswagen's quarterly results underscored the need to rapidly implement agreed measures to strengthen competitiveness, cut costs and improve sustainable profitability. The call comes as Porsche SE's adjusted result depends heavily on its contribution from Volkswagen, in which it holds about 31.9%, according to a company announcement in September. That month, Porsche SE cut its 2026 forecast for adjusted net income after tax to a range of negative €0.5 billion to positive €1.5 billion, from a previous range of €1.5 billion to €3.5 billion. The company linked the impact on its results to Volkswagen's equity-accounted performance. Volkswagen also cut its 2026 forecast for operating return on sales to a maximum of 1%, from a previous range of 4% to 5.5%, attributing part of the revision to a non-cash write-down of about €6 billion related to its Porsche business.
Net debt stood at about €5.103 billion on September 30, 2026, compared with €5.099 billion on December 31, 2025, which the company described as broadly stable. That left net debt close to its level at the end of the previous year, despite the reported loss for the nine-month period. The company expects net debt of between €4.7 billion and €5.2 billion in fiscal 2026. For the full year, it forecasts adjusted net income after tax of between negative €0.5 billion and positive €1.5 billion. Porsche SE had previously announced a wider annual adjusted-result range before cutting it in September.
The portfolio investments segment recorded net income after tax of €135 million in the first nine months of 2026, up from €13 million in the comparable period. Porsche SE attributed the increase particularly to a revaluation of its investment in Quantum Systems. The book value of portfolio investments was €669 million, compared with €535 million in the previous period. The company added that it invested in U.S. company Stoke Space Technologies in the previous quarter and made follow-on investments during the fiscal year in Quantum Motion, Quantum Systems, Waabi and Isar Aerospace. The figures highlight the expansion of the company's portfolio beyond its core automotive investments, while the accounting impact of Volkswagen remained central to the group result.
In a legal case related to Porsche SE's increase in its stake in Volkswagen, Germany's Federal Court of Justice rejected the plaintiffs' appeals in the model case. The lawsuits concern claims for €5.4 billion in damages, plus interest, brought by 40 plaintiffs, most of them U.S. hedge funds. At Porsche AG, the company said on October 27 that revenue in the first nine months of 2026 was €25.28 billion and operating profit was €1.74 billion. Its operating return on sales was 6.9% over the period. Porsche SE had scheduled the release of its third-quarter statement for November 10; the statement reported the nine-month results and the company's fiscal-year outlook.