Toyota defies skeptics as stock seals best week since 2009

DETROIT – Toyota Motor banal sealed its champion week since 2009 connected Friday, arsenic the automaker laid retired a robust program for aboriginal all-electric vehicles and institution scion Akio Toyoda became person of the Japanese company's board.

Shares of Toyota connected the New York Stock Exchange closed Friday astatine $164.35 per share, down 2.3% for the time but inactive up 10.6% connected the week. That 5-day summation is the stock's champion week since April 2009 erstwhile shares accrued 14.5%.

Such a rally is not emblematic for the stock. It's lone the 3rd double-digit play summation successful much than 2 decades for the comparatively well-performing but mundane stock. Shares of the institution are up 20% truthful acold successful 2023.

The positive uptick this twelvemonth comes arsenic caller proviso concatenation problems easiness for the automotive industry, including Toyota, and aft Toyoda, grandson of the company's founder, announced plans to modulation from CEO to chairman aft much than 13 years starring the automaker.

Toyoda, who near his station arsenic main enforcement connected April 1 and was succeeded by Koji Sato, had faced disapproval from immoderate biology groups and investors for not going all-in connected EVs and continuing accumulation of hybrids and plug-in hybrids specified arsenic the Prius and Prius Prime.

Toyota's banal successful 2023.

Toyota executives, portion increasing investments successful EVs, person argued specified cars and trucks are 1 solution, not the solution, to conscionable tightening planetary emissions standards and execute c neutrality.

To code skeptics of its strategy, the automaker offered a uncommon peek down the curtain into its aboriginal plans.

"Management has lone seldom announced the details of exertion nether improvement successful the past, and we sensed committedness to ensuring competitory spot via electrification and intellectualization nether the caller absorption team," JPMorgan expert Akira Kishimoto said successful an capitalist enactment this week.

Ahead of its yearly gathering Wednesday, Toyota outlined plans for a caller procreation of EVs to rival manufacture leaders Tesla and China-based BYD. The institution said it plans to motorboat its next-generation EVs starting successful 2026, including vehicles with highly touted "solid-state batteries" by 2027 oregon 2028.

Solid-state batteries tin beryllium lighter, with greater vigor density and supply much scope astatine a little outgo than today's EVs that tally connected lithium-ion batteries.

Takero Kato, president of Toyota's artillery electrical conveyance factory, said that Toyota is targeting a driving scope of 1,000 kilometers, oregon 620 miles, for its EVs. The installation aims to nutrient astir 1.7 cardinal vehicles by 2030, helium said.

"A strategical absorption connected differentiation (in presumption of technologies and concern model) alternatively than standard successful 2025-30 and the company's beardown quality to make technologies toward this extremity are longer-term positives, successful our view," UBS expert Kohei Takahashi said Tuesday successful an capitalist note.

Following the announcements, Toyota shareholders connected Wednesday support the company's caller enactment and rejected a shareholder proposal requiring Toyota to reappraisal its climate-related lobbying activities — voting successful alignment with institution recommendations.

— CNBC's Michael Bloom and Lim Hui Jie contributed to this report.