The Paris stock market is up on Thursday morning after setting a new all-time record in session, driven by good results from CAC 40 companies, especially in the automotive sector.
The CAC 40 index was up 0.88% around 10:30 am, at 7,745.16 points. Earlier, it even reached 7,750.07 points, its new all-time record in session, beating its previous mark on January 31.
The index is particularly buoyed by the strong performance of companies whose pleasing results are boosting stocks: six of the seven best CAC 40 performers followed earnings releases.
The macro-economic calendar is quite weak. Retail sales in the United States for January and figures from the US central bank on industrial production in January are on the agenda, but the publications will not be as closely scrutinized as last Tuesday’s US inflation.
The disappointment felt by investors after a less sharp than expected inflation decline was quickly digested.
“Bourses do not evaluate the monetary policy of central banks, but rather the profitability of listed companies,” said Jochen Stanzl, analyst at CMC Markets.
Thursday morning, around 9:40 am, French ten-year government bond interest rates were trading at 2.78%, after ending at 2.83% on Wednesday.
Stellantis and Renault are speeding ahead
Renault confirmed its return to the track after several difficult years by posting a net profit for the year 2023 of nearly 2.2 billion euros. The stock soared 6.86% to 40.28 euros, with Oddo analysts noting that “the rise in dividend and strong forecasts are likely to increase investor confidence.”
Automotive group Stellantis on Thursday reported a new record profit of 18.6 billion euros for 2023, and was up 3.95% at 23.45 euros. Automotive equipment manufacturers such as Valeo (+3.69% at 11.65 euros) and Forvia (+2.84% at 15.92 euros) also benefited.
In the aviation sector, Safran rose 3.56% to 182.18 euros after its results, Aéroports de Paris 2.52% to 121.90 euros. However, Airbus was stable (+0.04% at 150.32 euros).
Pernod Ricard sobered up
French wines and spirits giant Pernod Ricard’s net profit declined by 12% in the first half of its fiscal year, suffering from the “normalization” of the spirits market, according to CEO Alexandre Ricard. The company reduced its share buyback program and lowered its growth projections for 2024, but these are now in line with analyst consensus according to RBC Capital Markets.
The stock jumped 4.52% to 161.75 euros, allowing it to return to positive territory since the beginning of the year. In the same sector, Remy Cointreau was lifted and rose 4.4% to 101.40 euros.
