Monday, 29 July 2024 Reading time : 3 minutes

After months of trouble, things seem to be improving for pharmaceutical giant Roche. This is reflected in the price of its non-voting equity securities (Genussscheine), which at the beginning of this week were trading at around CHF 285.00, their highest level since February 2023. Recently, the stock price has been boosted by the unexpectedly positive first-half results. Based on these earnings, the company has raised its full-year profit forecast for 2024. However, Roche is also benefiting from the global boom in diabetes and obesity drugs. Following the acquisition of the biotech company Carmot last year, Roche has a number of therapies in its pipeline that have shown promising results in early studies. In an interview with the Financial Times, CEO Thomas Schinecker confirmed the company's ambitions, saying that Roche's first weight-loss drugs could come to market much faster than expected, potentially by 2028. 

Following the recent surge in its share price, Roche now has a market capitalisation of more than CHF 234 billion. This makes the pharmaceutical giant the most valuable Swiss company, relegating Nestlé to second place. The food company's shares have taken a beating in recent days after management revised its growth forecasts for the current year downwards when it announced its quarterly results. At around CHF 89.00, the shares are currently trading at their lowest level since the beginning of 2019. This puts Nestlé's market capitalisation at around CHF 230 billion. 

Novartis shares have also been on a rollercoaster ride. In mid-July, the equities reached their highest level of the year, only to plummet after the publication of the quarterly results. Novartis beat expectations and again raised its full-year profit forecast. However, the company must now prove that it can deliver on its ambitious goals, according to Bloomberg. With a market capitalisation of around CHF 213 billion, Novartis is the third most valuable Swiss company.

Together, the trio dominates the Swiss benchmark index: Nestlé, Novartis and Roche account for around half of the SMI in terms of market capitalisation, according to data from the stock exchange operator SIX. 

The following products give investors access to the SMI heavyweights:

7.35% p.a. BRC auf Nestle, Novartis, Roche
Barrier: 70%
Term: 1 year
Valor: 135804282

5.50% p.a. BRC auf Nestle, Novartis, Roche
Barrier: 59%
Term: 2 years
Valor: 135804283

Indicative terms

Disclaimer
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