When hunting for the best stocks to buy, investors can often find tremendous bargains among businesses that have fallen from grace. Why? Because most investors have already given up and moved on. And consequently, it becomes a lot easier to find potential bargains.
That brings us to Aston Martin Lagonda (LSE:AML). The luxury automaker, famous for making appearances in the James Bond series of films, has had a rough ride the last few years. And shareholders have had to endure an excruciating loss of almost 92%!
To put this into perspective, a £10,000 investment back in February 2021 is now only worth around £800 today. What happened? And is there hope for a turnaround in 2026?
The bane of mismanagement
Running a luxury automotive business is no easy feat, especially during times of higher inflation, elevated interest rates, and weak consumer sentiment. But for Aston Martin, these challenges have only been compounded by operational issues alongside a growing debt burden.
Yet, investors were hopeful for a 2023 turnaround catalyst in the form of its Valhalla supercar. So much so that Aston Martin shares actually more than doubled across the first six months of that year.
But this momentum was short-lived. Despite promising to start Valhalla deliveries in Q2 2023, the launch was ultimately delayed by a year. Then, when 2024 came knocking, it was delayed once again. It wouldn’t be until last October before any deliveries were finally completed.
These continuous delays resulted in almost all of management’s promises being broken. The company never delivered on its targets of becoming free cash flow positive, let alone becoming profitable. And, consequently, the firm’s now on its third CEO in the last six years.
With almost all credibility lost, it isn’t surprising that few investors are giving Aston Martin a second look. But as previously mentioned, this is also how terrific bargains can sometimes be created. So is this secretly a top stock to consider buying right now?
Hope for a comeback?
Despite the horrendous initial execution, Valhalla deliveries have finally begun. And the company’s targeting a total of 500 units to be shipped this year.
While optimistic, this target is achievable. What’s more, since customers have already lined up through pre-ordering, the company shouldn’t encounter any demand issues for this new revenue stream. And with a price tag of £850,000, this represents a potential top-line expansion of £425m.
At the group’s current near-30% gross margin, that could translate into a gross profit of around £128m. And if continued cost-cutting efforts help bolster operating margins, a successful Valhalla production ramp-up could finally push the business towards reaching its target of profitability.
Of course, this all boils down to good execution. And as previously discussed, the firm’s execution track record is fairly abysmal.
At the same time, Ferrari and Lamborghini are also busy launching their own new supercars, ramping up competitive pressure on customers who may be tired of waiting after an already three-year delay.
So is there any hope for a turnaround? Yes, but it comes with some very challenging headwinds.
Personally, I want to see more execution progress before considering Aston Martin shares for my portfolio. With that in mind, I think there are better alternative stocks to buy right now.
