THE TREND
(Boursier.com) — The CAC40 no longer knows how to (want to) drop! The day after a new historic high, the Paris market timidly lost 0.57% to 7,324 points at midday after losing more than 1% at the start of the morning. Despite the sharp drop on Wall Street yesterday and futures still very red in New York, the CAC40 continues to show maddening resistance, which has posted a gain of around 13% since January 1.
However, the latest economic indicators have brought the issue of inflation and the continued tightening of the monetary policies of the major central banks to the fore. U.S. producer prices indeed rose in January at the strongest pace in seven months, while jobless claims in the country unexpectedly fell last week, another sign of a labor market. momentum as the Fed works to rein in demand to curb inflation. In the eurozone, producer prices in Germany also rose more than expected in January year on year, by 17.8%, while in France, the consumer price index was confirmed at 7.0 % over one year.
Financial investors may be underestimating the persistence of inflation in the euro zone, said Isabel Schnabel, member of the board of governors of the European Central Bank. “There is a risk that inflation will turn out to be more persistent than what is currently assessed by financial markets,” she said in an interview with ‘Bloomberg’.
But operators seem, at present, to focus on business results. Accounts that are generally better than expected, which reassure companies’ ability to cope with the current environment. This Friday, Air France KLM, Imerys and Safran saw their results welcomed by the market while Hermès fell victim to profit taking despite a still impressive publication. On the other hand, it is more complicated for Eutelsat and Teleperformance.
On the currency market, the euro is still losing ground (-0.25%) against the greenback, around $1.064 between banks after hitting the $1.10 mark recently. Bitcoin falls 3.5% and is trading near $23,700 on Coindesk. Finally, oil prices are in the red due to concerns about demand linked to the prospect of a prolonged rise in interest rates by the Fed. A barrel of Brent fell 2.3% to $83.2 in London.
RISING VALUES
* Air France-KLM rose 6.8% to 1.78 euros at the opening of the Paris market, operators welcoming the solid end of the year for the airline. Over the last three months of 2022, the Franco-Dutch group recorded a net profit from continuing operations of 504 million euros, against a deficit of 126 ME a year earlier, for an increase in turnover of nearly 50% to 7.13 billion euros, the highest in the history of the airline group. Ebitda came out at 786 ME, down 5%. Results above analysts’ expectations. It should also be noted that for the first time in a long time, AF was more profitable than KLM over the period with an operating profit of 144 ME, i.e. a margin of 3.2%, against a deficit of 2 ME for the carrier Dutch. Over the full year, the company made a net profit of 728 ME, compared to a loss of 3.29 billion E in 2021, for revenues of 26.4 billion E, up nearly 80% at constant exchange rates. . Operating profit reached 1.19 billion euros, with an operating margin of 4.5%, higher than that of 2019 (4.2%) despite a sharp rise in fuel prices.
* Imerys (+5% to 42.9 euros), driven by its latest results above market expectations. The group unveiled for its fourth quarter an EBITDA of 152 ME (+ 14.5%), 6% above the consensus, for revenues of 1.024 MdE (+ 8.2% LFL). The company will propose the payment of a dividend of 3.85 euros per share compared to 1.55 euros paid in 2022… Imerys also confirms its medium-term ambitions for organic growth and current EBITDA margin, presented during Investor Day on November 7, 2022.
* Ubisoft advance of 4.4% to 20.55 euros. A post warning, the video publisher only booked revealing business (IFRS 15) 772.5 ME third 2022-2023, 16% (12.8% at constant). The third amounts to 726.9 ME, the target recently revised to 725 ME 2.6% (-5.4% at constant). Ubisoft confirmed 10% on the previous year non-IFRS operating profit of around -500 ME for the financial year. For the 2023-2024 financial year, non-IFRS operating profit is around 400 ME.
* Saffron (+0.8% to 135.2 euros). The aeronautical equipment manufacturer published current operating income of 2.41 billion euros in 2022, up 33.4% on an annual basis. The group’s turnover amounted to 19.04 billion euros over the past financial year, up 24.8%, helped by the recovery in air traffic. The group anticipates a current operating profit of around 3 billion euros and a turnover of “at least 23 million euros” in 2023.
FALLING VALUES
* Valneva stumbles 9.4% to 5.75 euros after indicating that Pfizer, as a sponsor of the study, decided to exclude a significant percentage of the participants who had been recruited in the United States for the clinical study of Phase 3 VALOR (NCT05477524), evaluating the efficacy, safety and immunogenicity of a Lyme disease vaccine candidate, VLA15. Vaccination of these participants, representing approximately half of all study participants, will be discontinued following violations of Good Clinical Practice (GCP) at certain clinical trial centers operated by a clinical trial company third party. The exclusion of these participants is not linked to problems of safety of the candidate vaccine and is not motivated by adverse effects that would be reported by participants.
* GTT is abused as quite rarely this weekend with a title that drops by 8.4% to 97 euros. The world leader in the design of containment systems with cryogenic membranes used for maritime transport and for the storage of LNG unveiled accounts that exceeded analysts’ expectations, but the guidance for 2023 Ebitda is considered a bit short by the market. GTT is aiming for a turnover of 385-430 ME, an Ebitda of 190-235 ME and a dividend distribution target corresponding to a minimum rate of 80% of consolidated net income. The consensus was counting on an Ebitda of 235.5 ME for revenues of 409.4 ME.
* Eutelsat (-4.8% to 6.7 euros) ranks high among the disappointments of the day in Paris. The satellite operator unveiled half-year accounts down with an Ebitda of 419 million euros, down 3.8%, for a total turnover of 574 ME, up 0.3% on a published but down 6.1% on a like-for-like basis. The EBITDA margin thus stood at 72.9% at constant exchange rates (73% as reported) compared to 76.1% a year earlier, reflecting the decline in revenue, particularly in Broadcast . Net income attributable to the Group came to 52 ME, down 68.7%. As of December 31, 2022, the order book stood at €3.7 billion compared to €4.2 billion as of December 31, 2021. Despite these lower results, management confirmed its financial objectives for the 2022-23 financial year. and the following.
* Teleperformance fell 3.7% to 253 euros. The call center specialist published annual revenue up 14.6% on a reported basis at 8.15 billion euros, with current EBITA up 17.8% to 1.262 billion euros. The management proposes the payment of a dividend of 3.85 euros per share, up 16.7%, and forecasts for 2023 a growth in turnover of more than 7% on a like-for-like basis. Current EBITA margin on sales is expected to increase by +20bp to reach 15.7%.
* Hermes International gives 0.7% to 1,730 euros, victim of releases after the announcement of a new very solid exercise. Over the year 2022, the saddler recorded a net income group share of 3.367 billion euros, up 38%, for a consolidated turnover of 11.602 billion euros, up 29% at current exchange rates. and 23% at constant exchange rates compared to 2021. Current operating income amounted to E4.697 billion (+33%), or 40.5% of sales. The ‘Bloomberg’ consensus was expecting a trading profit of 4.54 billion euros, a net profit of 3.19 billion euros and revenues of 11.46 billion euros. Adjusted net cash increased by 2.672 billion euros and reached 9.742 billion euros at the end of December.