The Paris Stock Exchange closed down 0.17% on Wednesday, penalized by the rout of the luxury group Kering and the laboratory giant Eurofins.
The flagship CAC 40 index fell 13.92 points to 8,091.86 points. The day before, it had gained 0.81%, ending its highest level in two weeks.
The session was punctuated by company publications, comments Vincent Juvyns, member of the JPMorgan AM strategy team.
As stocks are not considered cheap at the moment, their future progress will depend above all on the growth of their results, continues Vincent Juvyns.
Investors are particularly waiting to know the results of American giants in the technology sector.
These heavyweights have yet to arrive but the equivalent of 48% of American stock market capitalization has already published its results this week, he pointed out.
The Parisian market, like other stock markets, also suffered from a rise in bond rates.
In Europe, the 10-year German bond, which is a benchmark in Europe, was 2.59% compared to 2.50% on Tuesday. The French same chance moved 3.09% against 2.99% the day before.
Kering sanctioned
Kering’s stock fell by 6.87% to 326.15 euros, falling to its lowest level since 2017, with investors sanctioning the fall in sales and the plummeting operational profitability, mainly due to its flagship brand Gucci.
Compared to its peak in June 2021, Kering’s stock fell by even 60%. The group is not showing overwhelming optimism for the second quarter, note Oddo BHF analysts.
Eurofins, worse than expected
The pharmaceutical, food and environmental products analysis group Eurofins lost 7.73% to 56.84 euros, signing the worst performance of the CAC 40.
The market sanctioned a turnover below analysts’ expectations, despite an increase of 5% in the first quarter.
In the health sector outside the flagship index, the Ipsen laboratory gained 0.81% to 112.30 euros after the publication of its results.
Orange does not convince
The French telecoms giant Orange achieved a turnover up 3.5% in the first quarter, published data, and confirmed its financial forecasts for 2024.
However, the stock lost 3.58% to 10.65 euros, the third biggest decline in the flagship index.
Among the less good news, according to Oddo BHF analysts, the market notes that in France, Orange has lost 40,000 internet customers after having already lost 30,000 in the previous quarters since the price increases decided by the group.
France’s new management will have to restore commercial dynamics because price increases cannot continue, they stressed.
Air Liquide in decline
The industrial gas group Air Liquide achieved a turnover of 6.65 billion euros in the first quarter of 2024, a decline of 7.3% mainly due to the drop in energy prices, as well as an effect of unfavorable exchange rate, he announced on Wednesday.
The company, the 8th best valued on the CAC 40, fell by 2.32% to 186.14 euros.
STMicroelectonics port by favorable winds
The Paris semiconductor sector is driven by an upward revision in turnover from Dutch chip supplier ASM International, which jumped more than 10% in Amsterdam.
The STMicroelectronics share rose 5.39% to 39.22 euros, the best performance on the CAC 40. In 2024, it still remains down 13.32%.