Stellantis’ $30B Battery Bonfire Forces Dividend Freeze and Hybrid-Bond Rescue Mission

I don’t know what you guys are whining about… we did set a new company record, that’s got to count for something right? -Stellantis CEO on earnings call

Golf clap, please.

Give it up for the fine folks at Stellantis, who just managed to accomplish two things at once: deliver the company’s first annual loss ever… and cement their place in the EV hype cycle hall of fame (these are not easy things to do).

And in case you’re wondering how bad the damage is…

It’s bad, bad.

Try $26.3 BILLION… likely floating around in the pacific ocean (or Lake Erie because you know, Detroit).

The Jeep-and-Ram maker swung from a roughly $6.5B profit last year… to a $26.3B net loss in 2025. Why? Because management bet the farm on battery-powered bliss… and then realized customers still kinda like engines that go vroom.

An embarrassing $30B in write-downs later (voila) history’s first red year. To be fair, though, this isn’t exactly a century-old institution tripping over its own extension cord. Unlike Ford, which has been cranking out cars since 1903, Stellantis has only existed since 2021, when Fiat Chrysler merged with PSA Group to form the rubber-duck-magnet empire we know today.

(Source: The Detroit News)

Likely trying to save his job, CEO Antonio Filosa all but said, “Yeah… we overestimated how fast the energy transition would happen.” Translation: In my defense, I’m not the only genius who thought everyone would trade in their V8 for a wall charger.

Which, to be fair, he’s not entirely wrong. General Motors, Ford, and even Honda have all taken chunky EV charges lately. Turns out, “freedom of choice” polls better than “thou shalt plug in.”

So how tf is Tony gonna plug this $30B gaping hole?

Stellantis’ reset includes canceling the Ram 1500 EV (RIP battery truck dreams), taking TNT to gigafactories in Italy and Germany, reworking multiple EV platforms and suspending the 2026 dividend (the true fire alarm a company is in trouble).

Oh wait, I almost forgot. They’re also issuing up to $5.9B in hybrid bonds. Think of it like a capital-structure mullet… coupon up front, “we’ll see about that” in the back.

Now before we call the tow truck… The second half actually looked… dare I say… competent?

Net revenue climbed 10% to $93.5B. Shipments moved in the right direction, with North America basically putting the company on its back. The legacy muscle showed up too… Ram 1500 HEMI sales came through in a big way, Jeep hybrids pulled their weight, and by the time the year wrapped, even Europe had started placing orders again.

When all was said and done, adjusted operating loss for 2025 came in at roughly $1B… a dramatic reversal from about $10.2B in operating income the year prior. Is it painful? Absolutely. But management believes it’s better to take the medicine now than drag it out.

That said, shares are still down 31% this year after a 25% one-day implosion when the EV charge dropped.

Looking ahead, Stellantis is projecting a little bit of growth in 2026 and maybe (if they’re lucky) free cash flow by 2027.

They’re also sitting on roughly $54B in liquidity… so this isn’t a Spirit Airlines bankruptcy situation either. But this $26 billion loss is an expensive lesson in… KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER. They clearly did not.

At the time of publishing this article, Stocks.News holds positions in Ford as mentioned in the article.