Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (PNK:NSANY) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (PNK:NSANY) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript May 9, 2024

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. isn’t one of the 30 most popular stocks among hedge funds at the end of the third quarter (see the details here).

Julian Krell: Welcome everyone to the Nissan Financial Results for the Fiscal Year 2023 the Investors and Analysts Session. This is Julian Krell speaking, Head of Investor Relations. Thank you very much for joining. The presentation material can be found on the Nissan IR website. Please be informed of the disclaimer included on the last page of the document and read it carefully. Thank you. For today’s financial results presentation, I am joined by Mr. Uchida, CEO; and Mr. Ma, CFO. First, Mr. Uchida, CEO, will talk about Nissan NEXT Review, followed by the highlights of the fiscal year 2023 results. Then Mr. Ma, CFO, will explain the financial results. Finally, CEO, Uchida will talk about the fiscal year 2024 outlook, briefly touch on the Arc, our new business plan and shareholder return. This will be followed by a Q&A session. I am now handing over to Mr. Uchida. Thank you very much for your time.

Makoto Uchida: Thank you for joining us for Nissan’s fourth quarter results for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2024. Today, we will recap the progress achieved during the Nissan NEXT Midterm Plan, which concluded at the end of March this year. And Stephen will take you through the details of our full year and fourth quarter results. I will then explain our outlook for the new fiscal year and priorities of our new business plan, the Arc. Our business transformation plan, Nissan NEXT focus on the three areas. Rationalization of both our product portfolio and production capacity, prioritizing the markets and product segments where Nissan is strongest and investment for the future in areas including electrification, autonomous driving and battery technology.

With these actions, we achieved our goal of both reducing production capacity and streamlining our product portfolio by 20%. We launched all 12 models ahead of schedule and the quality of sales improved. We elevated our Alliance to the next level. Taken together, these actions refocus Nissan on generating value rather than seeking volume. These steps laid a solid foundation for future growth while maintaining profitability. We have refreshed our model portfolio, achieved solid profitability, free cash flow and net cash are improving significantly. We have made strategic investments in future products, technologies and enhanced our partnerships. We have prioritized returns to shareholders, as shown by our resumed dividend. In fiscal year 2023, we delivered steady results.

Net revenue increased 20% year-over-year, operating profit rose 51% and net income increased 92% year-on-year. This was a resilient performance in a challenging market environment with more fragmentation and increased competition. Stephen will now take you through our results in more details. Go ahead, please?

A wide view of a large auto dealership, its showroom packed with different types of cars.

Stephen Ma: Thank you, Uchida-san. In the fiscal year 2023, total global retail sales increased by 4% year-over-year to 3.44 million units. Excluding China, unit sales rose by 17%, reflecting healthy demand in all regions, including Japan, North America and Europe. In Japan, unit sales rose by 6.5%, in North America by 23% and in Europe by 17% and other markets by 14%. In China, retail sales fell by 24% to 794,000 units. Global production followed a similar pattern, rising by 1.5% to 3.43 million units. Outside of China, output rose 14% to 2.65 million units. Production in China decreased by 26% as we adjusted supply to demand. Following the -- for the three-month period ending March 31, 2024, global retail sales increased by 12% year-over-year.

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