Mercedes-Benz Stock Hovers Near Yearly Low as Buyback Crosses 30 Million Shares and AMG.EA Prepares for LA Debut

Mercedes-Benz shares languish near 52-week low as buybacks accelerate. Key capital markets day in LA to showcase AMG.EA platform, silicon-anode batteries, and luxury EV strategy.

Mercedes-Benz finds itself at a crossroads. The carmaker’s shares are languishing close to their 52-week low, the buyback program is accelerating, and a high-stakes capital markets day in Los Angeles is set to test whether investors will buy into the luxury EV narrative. The stock closed Monday at €50.10, down 18.7% since the start of the year and a full 10% beneath the 200-day moving average — a technical signal that the market still sees no clear trend reversal.

The share repurchase program, announced in February 2025 and formally launched on November 3, is gaining speed. Between May 11 and 15, the company bought back 3.9 million of its own shares, pushing the total since the program’s start to 30.1 million. That equates to 3.05% of the total voting rights, which stand at 962.9 million shares. Buybacks can underpin earnings per share by shrinking the denominator, but the stock’s proximity to the yearly low of €47.92 shows that mechanical support measures alone are not enough to shift sentiment.

The real test comes later this week at Mercedes-Benz’s Los Angeles capital markets event, where the focus will be on the AMG.EA platform — a dedicated high-performance electric architecture. Underpinning the lineup will be axial-flux motors from Mercedes’ subsidiary Yasa. Each unit weighs just 24 kilograms yet delivers up to 474 horsepower. Weight and power density are critical in the luxury segment, where range, driving dynamics, and pricing power go hand in hand.

Battery technology is also front and center. Mercedes has partnered with Sila on silicon-anode cells that achieve an energy density of 800 watt-hours per litre — a sharp jump from the current industry standard of around 500 Wh/l. That leap could finally give the luxury buyer a convincing reason to go electric without sacrificing range.

Strategically, the automaker is leaning into what it calls “Economics of Desire” — a plan to grow disproportionately in the top-end segment, where margins are fattest. The goal is to have models in that ultra-premium tier account for more than 15% of total unit sales by 2027. Meanwhile, mid-term volume targets hover around 2.0 million vehicles annually, but the mix of luxury powertrains, software, and digital services will determine profitability. Central to that is MB.OS, Mercedes’ proprietary operating system, which will roll out gradually and enable everything from Level 3 autonomous driving to over-the-air revenue streams.

Analysts at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan have set price targets between €66 and €70, implying a significant upside from current levels. But both caveat that Mercedes needs to deliver proof that premium pricing remains sustainable in the battery era. The next concrete checkpoint is the second-quarter earnings release on July 28.

In a separate strategic note, CEO Ola Källenius has left the door open to expanding into defense technology, citing the shifting geopolitical landscape in Europe. He emphasized that any such move would have to make economic sense and would not detract from the core automotive business. For now, the idea remains a distant option rather than an imminent pivot.

What the buyback cannot mask is the operational strain. The stock is still bruised by competitive pressure, patchy demand in key markets, and the heavy cost of the electric transition. Los Angeles will give investors a first proper look at the hardware that is supposed to reignite desire — and hopefully lift the share price out of the doldrums.