Car rental: Sixt benefits from tourists

In economically bad times, an international travel boom comes to the aid of the car rental company Sixt. Last year, the global numbers of tourists, passengers and cruise passengers rose by ten percent, reported CEO Alexander Sixt at the annual press conference of his company. “Of course these are good news for us, because Sixt also benefits from the positive travel arrangement as a car one,” said the manager. Sixt is expecting increasing demand this year too.

Sixt did not want to say whether and how much rental cars will be more expensive this year, referring to curious competitors and the uncertain world situation: “We generally do not take a position at specific prices.”

Sixt offered an average of 184,300 rental cars on average in 2024 and is therefore one of the big ones in the industry. In 2024, the company from the Munich suburb was a difficult year, although sales climbed by 10.5 percent to over four billion euros. However, the net profit fell by over a quarter to 244 million euros. The board therefore wants to reduce the dividend for shareholders by almost a third from 3.90 to EUR 2.70 compared to the previous year.

Despite unbroken international travel, Sixt gets the consequences of the weak economy worldwide. One consequence is strongly sunken used car prices, so Sixt took less money than expected when selling used rental cars.

CEO: E-cars will prevail

This year the company plans to continue expanding, in 2024 Sixt opened fifty new rental stations worldwide. Hopes are particularly suspected in the United States, where the economy grows more dynamic than in Europe. Three years ago, Sixt announced the goal of equipping his fleet with 70 to 90 percent electric cars by 2030. Sixt basically states that, even if the changeover will take longer. “We are still convinced that electromobility will prevail,” said the CEO. When this is done in what form is very dependent on the manufacturers’ products. “And that’s the most important thing: what the customer wants.”