BMW cuts 2026 automotive margin guidance again to between -0.5% and +0.5%

Second guidance cut this year

BMW lowered its 2026 forecast on Tuesday, 3 November, for the second time this year. The automotive segment's EBIT margin is now expected between -0.5% and +0.5%, down from the earlier range of 1% to 3%. Return on capital employed in the automotive business, known as RoCE, is now seen between -1% and +1%, against 1% to 5% before. Before structural and portfolio measures, the margin should still stay above 2%. The company said its board had decided to widen and intensify portfolio and structural measures, which will weigh on fourth-quarter automotive results as a non-operating effect. The company had already lowered its targets in June. It now expects to earn less in its core business than it had projected, with the cost of job cuts among the causes.

Job cuts speed up and the severance program closes early

BMW announced in the summer that it would cut thousands of jobs in Germany. A severance program opened in early October and closed after less than three weeks because take-up was surprisingly strong. The company now says the staff reduction will be completed faster than originally planned, and the cut in management positions will come sooner than announced. Many departures, and their costs, are expected to fall already in the fourth quarter. Earlier statements had put the total cost of the job-cut program at around one billion euros. The update comes under new group chief executive Milan Nedeljković.

Weaker deliveries and older electric models leave early

BMW now expects automotive deliveries to fall by 5% to just under 10% this year, a moderate decline compared with an earlier forecast of a slight drop. Demand for the new Neue Klasse electric cars is strong, and that is why some older electric models will leave the lineup earlier than originally planned. The company expects fully electric cars to rise slightly as a share of automotive deliveries compared with 2025. Motorcycle deliveries are forecast to decline slightly. The company kept its free cash flow outlook for the automotive segment, which it still expects to exceed 2.5 billion euros in 2026. Taken together, the guidance now assumes lower sales alongside a smaller margin. After the announcement, which came after the close of trading, BMW shares fell 3.4% in after-hours trading.

Timeline and next steps

The sequence runs from the June target cut to the summer job-cut announcement, then the early October severance program that closed within three weeks.

The guidance revision followed on Tuesday, 3 November, and the company will publish its third-quarter figures on Wednesday morning, 4 November 2026. Further details will be given in that report.