Carrefour goes on for a ninth consecutive session in the green at the Paris Bourse. The title recovered 5.1% yesterday thanks to the return of the rumor of the existence of negotiations with Auchan for a merger. It was Bloomberg who rekindled the flame, specifying that the Mulliez family is seeking to ally with investment funds to afford the distribution group. The lack of denial after the publication of the rumor contributes to pushing Carrefour stock again by 4.7% this morning, around 18 EUR, the level reached a few weeks ago with the first rumors concerning a possible marriage with Auchan.
Despite a potential price mentioned around 23.50 EUR by Les Echos, the Carrefour title does not take off suddenly. Last October, the slider was said to be set at EUR 21.50.
Carrefour share price compared to the STOXX Europe 600 over 5 years
“Auchan’s secular loss of market share in key markets such as France and Spain and difficult competitive conditions in Russia, the strength of the grocer’s balance sheet after its withdrawal from China and the remarkable synergies that would result from ” such a combination (which we believe would amount to at least 450 million euros) constitute the ideal conditions for a firm offer to actually be made“, underlines James Grzinic, who follows the file at Jefferies. The analyst considers that the pitfalls antitrust are manageable and that this Franco-French option would not raise the fears which could have aroused the approach of Alimentation Couche-Tard.
Carrefour, a “big-small” player in the sector through capitalization (Source Zonebourse)
In recent years, Carrefour has found itself at the heart of rumors or plans for offers or merger with several players in the sector. Especially :