Aston Martin slumps after loss as takeover speculation mounts

LONDON -- Aston Martin is facing yet more pain and questions about its future after a first-half loss added to a difficult week in which the British luxury carmaker revised downward planned vehicle sales.

Since its stock listing in October, the manufacturer has struggled to find its footing as a publicly traded company. Aston Martin shares are now worth less than a quarter of what they were when it went public 10 months ago. The stock plunged as much as 22 percent on Wednesday after the company reported a first-half operating loss. The shares were trading at 4.52 pounds as of 9:24 a.m. in London, compared with 19 pounds at their debut in October. Aston Martin is now the third-worst performing stock in the UK mid-cap FTSE 250 benchmark this year.