A recent study conducted by German economics professor Ferdinand Dudenhoffer revealed what a lot of us have known for quite some time: Ferrari is the most profitable brand in the auto industry. The Italian automaker has held that title for a while, including the last six months, when it reported an operating profit of around $80,000 for every new model it sells. Ferrari isn’t the only automaker that is making money for every new model it sells, but its operating profit is head and shoulders above what other brands come away with. In this sense, Maranello is king.

It’s Ferarri’s world; we’re all just living in it. That should be a slogan at the company’s Maranello headquarters because as far as operating profit is concerned, nobody’s touching the Prancing Horse. That’s not to say that other automakers aren’t successful because they are, too, at least in the context of generating profits.

According to the study conducted by Professor Ferdinand Dudenhoffer, Porsche earned almost $20,000 in operating profit for every new model it sold in the first half of 2018. It’s a long way from what Ferrari makes, but the German automaker does have production volume on its side compared to its Italian counterpart. Porsche’s operating profit is impressive in its own right considering that it’s twice as profitable as the German triumvirate, Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz. All three German automakers reportedly made over $3,000 for every new model it sold in the same timeframe. Even Maserati earned good money — around $5,800 — for every new model that found its way to a new customer.

Obviously, not every automaker is raking in the big bucks. Jaguar Land Rover, for example, made less than $1,000 for every new Jag or Land Rover model that sold in the first half of the year. Then there are those who are in positions no automaker would want to be in: the red. The study specifically cites Bentley and Tesla as two of the biggest losers in this regard. Bentley, for example, generates losses of almost $20,000 with each new car it has sold since January 2018. For its part, Tesla isn’t doing as bad, reporting losses of almost $13,000 with each new model sold. That said, there are a number of reasons why Bentley and Tesla are bleeding money. The British automaker, for example, is investing heavily into electric car technologies, whereas Tesla is bleeding money because it’s investing in anything it can get its hands on.

It is interesting to think that nobody can reach Ferrari’s place in this study. You would think that if there’s one company that can do it, it’s Lamborghini. Unfortunately, the Italian automaker doesn’t reveal its financial records to the public so it wasn’t included in the study. Still, it would be interesting to see if Lambo is on the same level as Ferrari in terms of the operating profit that’s attached to each model it has sold since the calendar flipped to 2018.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 2016 Ferrari 488 GTB.

Read more Ferrari news.