(BFM Stock Exchange) – The 2024 annual results season has returned its verdict. This cuvée has been mixed but the result is generally positive. What actions have best successful? And what groups have bitten dust? News Bulletin 247 takes stock.

The ball is now completed. The 2024 annual results season ended Thursday with the publication of Bouygues’ annual accounts, the last resident of the index to have returned his copy.

The overall printing is, as always, relatively contrasting. But, ultimately, the balance sheet is positive or even encouraging. Especially compared to the previous season, that of the third quarter of 2024, which had proven to be sullen or even bad.

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An encouraging assessment

To draw up this assessment, we took a simple indicator: the performance of the action of a resident of CAC 40 during the session following the publication of his results. That is to say the day the same for the groups that published in the morning or the next day for those delivering their accounts in the evening, after the closing of the market.

This method obviously has its limits because immediate reception does not necessarily say everything about the reception of the market. Publicis only “took” 2.3% when “published its annual results. But the title won another 2.6% the next day, which suggests that the investors were satisfied with his copy. Société Générale has led more than 13% after unveiling its annual accounts. But its title has still won 20% since this publication, showing how a rocking seems to take place on the Defense Bank in the eyes of the market.

Ultimately, out of the 39 groups of the CAC 40 to have made annual results (excluding Pernod Ricard therefore), 24 saw their action progress during the session which followed the publication of their results and 15 recorded a drop. As for the average variation, it is set at +0.8%.

What groups have best successful? What are those who have disappointed? We compiled a classification in the table below.

Ultimately, ArcelorMittal (+13.4%) occupies the top of the list of a short head, ahead of Société Générale (+13.3%). The steelmaker delivered a gross exploitation result clearly higher than expectations and indicated count on a clear progression of the steel request in 2025. Action A, notes Deutsche Bank, also been carried by the hope of a peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia, which would constitute a catalyst for the title, ArcelorMittal having a site in the Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih.

Société Générale, for its part, enthusiastic the market by publishing good results in all respects and announcing a program of share buybacks. The establishment has acted a change in software that favors growth value, focusing on improving its performance.

The retail bank in France has started a positive inflection of its dynamics, Boursorama is heading for a clear improvement in its profitability and market activities remain solid. In a note published this week, Jefferies noted its course target at 55 euros (which gives a potential of more than 40% to action) and now expects the bank to reach a profitability ratio of its tangible equity (ROTE) of 10% in 2026.

Stmicro in the peloton tail

Legrand (+9%) completes the podium. The specialist in electrical equipment has, like Schneider Electric (+2.99%), experienced an end of the 2024 at stroke, thanks to the vigor of its products intended for data centers, a very strong growth segment thanks to artificial intelligence.

Dassault Systems (+8.86%), fails at the foot of the podium. The increase in action was mainly due to the words of management which, during the “call” with the analysts, delivered an attractive cash flow trajectory and put into perspective the risks of competition from Nvidia.

Essilorluxottica (+7.17%) delivered growth clearly above expectations in the fourth quarter while inie (+5.3%) noted several of its targets for 2025 and 2026.

As for disappointments, Stmicroelectronics (-10.68%) closes the walking. The group of semiconductors unveiled forecasts for the first quarter of 2025 significantly lower than expectations and has not formulated prospects for the whole year. But, recently, the action experienced a flight, supported by Jefferies. The bank has gone to purchase, judging that a rebound in the activity is to come in the second part of 2025.

Capgemini (-10.7%) communicated prudent prospects for 2025. Too much in the eyes of the market which hoped better and has thus sanctioned the company which does not exclude accusing a new drop in its income this year.

Carrefour completes the trio of the strongest punishments. The distributor has published a current operating profit significantly lower than expectations due to its difficulties in several European markets. And, again, his prospects for 2025 disappointed.

We have also published a second ranking, which tries to correct the impact of the market the same day. For this we have measured the outperformance or underperformance of a title compared to the CAC 40. Clearly, if a value takes 4% and the CAC 40 wins 1% during a given session, the outperformance of this same value is 3%. The idea is to qualify the results according to market conditions. Recording a 3% increase when the CAC 40 (like Thursday) is hard is more deserving than when the market is euphoric.

This second ranking does not really upset the first. But it allows Dassault Systems to get on the podium at the expense of Legrand, while theie goes from the seventh to fifth place.