Daimler AG to be renamed Mercedes-Benz AG

From today, Daimler AG will now formally go by the name Mercedes-Benz Group AG in a bid to increase its shareholder value.

"We have a real chance to raise the multiple," CEO Ola Kaellenius told media in recent days, though she did not go as far as to set a specific target valuation for the firm – which is now worth just under €77 billion (AU$123 billion).

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The move follows the spin-off of the company's truck and bus division last year – now known as Daimler Truck AG – with shares rising marginally since its market debut.

As of last Friday, it was trading at €32.23 (AU$51.39) – while Mercedes-Benz shares, at their highest levels since 2015 in November 2021, reached €74.25 (AU$118.40) on the day of the split, but have lowered to €71.15 (AU$113.48).

According to Reuters, analysts say there is only so much potential for luxury carmakers like Mercedes-Benz to grow when compared with electric vehicle-only rivals such as Lucid or Tesla.

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"Investors could start viewing Mercedes as a Lucid Motors or Tesla type and start to give it an EV multiple," European auto analyst at RBC Capital Markets Tom Narayan told the news agency.

"But Lucid and Tesla get to start at 100 per cent EV. For Mercedes you have to convert your existing internal combustion engine business to EVs. That may be a limitation on how far the multiple could go near-term.”

For decades Daimler has sold its vehicles under the world-renowned Mercedes-Benz brand. The company was formed with the merging of the Daimler and Benz auto companies in 1926 before purchasing Chrysler in 1998 and being named Daimler Chrysler AG. After later selling off the US brand in 2007, it became known simply as Daimler AG.