The dynamics are encouraging, even if we are still a little surprised by the figures communicated by management: operating profit that does not restate restructuring costs or gains or losses on asset disposals; a net profit that does not deduct minority interests; officially adjusted profit derived from an unofficially adjusted profit; etc.

Let's skip this curiosity. Like other German manufacturers, Daimler Truck has taken the habit of reporting its results in two ways: firstly, with a net result that includes the part linked to the lucrative credit activities; secondly, with an "industrial" free cash flow, i.e. a cash profit resulting from the profit-making activities of the company.-Secondly, with an "industrial" free cash flow, i.e. a cash profit from manufacturing activities - but which excludes the high working capital requirement associated with credit activities.

We will be forced to make do with these elements, as it is still very difficult to reconcile accounting results with cash flows and to exclude the exceptional from the recurrent. This is without mentioning the structure of the debt, which is partly linked to manufacturing activities and partly to banking activities.

Taking management at its word, the industrial activity - manufacturing - has generated an average cash profit of €1.65 billion over the last two years. The banking activity, for its part, generates a profit of $300 million and runs with a nice return on equity of 15%.

Let's put a multiple of x12 on the profits of the manufacturing activities, and a multiple of x20 on the credit activities: we get - half a surprise - a sum of the parts exactly equal to the current market capitalization of €25 billion. This, let's emphasize, with all the amateurism that such a calculation implies - but that everyone can modulate as they wish.

By the way, the year 2022 will have been rather good: Daimler Truck sold 520,000 vehicles, compared to 455,000 last year; the consolidated operating profit of €3.5 billion is a five-year record, thanks in part to a very favorable euro-dollar exchange rate.

The company's great strength is its presence in North America, where it is the undisputed number one with a 40% market share and an operating margin twice as high as in Europe, where it is also number one.

Exposure to Asia remains limited: here is one less source of concern, which no doubt explains Daimler Truck's valuation premium over other German manufacturers such as BMW, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, or its direct comparable Traton, ex-VW, all of which are highly exposed to China. Good point for Daimler Truck here.

Despite seemingly very low earnings multiples - x4 for BMW, x5 for Traton, x6 for Mercedes-Benz, x9 for Daimler Truck - the latter will remain valued primarily on the basis of its dividend yield of 4.1% as it stands.

In a context of rising interest rates, given the structurally limited growth and margin expansion prospects, it is not certain that this will be enough to compensate for the risk. In this respect, it is difficult to see the share price breaking through the €35 ceiling, which was reached only once a few weeks after the split.