Stellantis N.V. (STLA) Confronts Costly EV Challenges and Credit Risks

Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) is one of the best foreign stocks to buy right now. On February 10, Bloomberg reported that Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) is exploring an exit from its US battery joint venture with South Korea’s Samsung SDI Co. This partnership was formed to build electric vehicle (EV) batteries under the StarPlus Energy venture. Discussions between the two companies about the future of the joint venture are ongoing, the report said.

According to Bloomberg, Stellantis has not made a final decision on exiting the battery venture. It added that Stellantis may pursue options such as selling its stake to a third party. However, analysts and insiders revealed that an exit could be costly and take considerable time to complete, as per the report.

In a different update, on February 10, Reuters reported that credit rating agencies S&P Global and Moody’s downgraded Stellantis’s long-term credit ratings to the lowest level that still qualifies as investment grade.

S&P Global lowered Stellantis’ long-term issuer credit rating from BBB to BBB- and assigned a negative outlook, said Reuters. For Moody’s Stellantis’s long-term rating is now Baa3 down from Baa2, although the agency retained the stable outlook. Both agencies’ ratings are now one notch above “junk” or non-investment-grade status, according to the report.

Reuters stated that the agencies cited weaker-than-expected profitability and cash flow forecasts for 2025 as key reasons for the downgrades. For context, Stellantis had recently reported significant EV-related losses and write-downs, including a multibillion-euro charge tied to revising its EV strategy.

Stellantis N.V. (NYSE:STLA) is a Dutch company formed through the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Groupe PSA. Its portfolio includes iconic brands such as Jeep, Ram, Peugeot, Citroën, Fiat, and Maserati. The company’s operations span Europe, North America, and other global markets.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.