Strong results, attractive return opportunities
The reporting season is on, with listed companies presenting their results for the past quarter in the days to come. Some of these companies have already presented strong results, including some blue chip firms from Switzerland.
Holcim Group's (YTD +22%) first-quarter EBIT was 6% above consensus, and the building materials producer also slightly exceeded expectations with its sales. Guidance for 2023 was raised early in the year, suggesting high confidence. ZKB Equity Research rates the stock with "outperform".
Novartis is also raising its 2023 outlook after both Q1 sales and net income significantly beat expectations. While the stock suffered a significant loss early in the year, it has rebounded strongly since the end of March, currently trading at just under +10% YTD ("outperform").
Givaudan was able to convince with organic growth, which is above expectations at +3.6% in Q1 2023; the still attractive luxury goods industry is providing tailwind for the fragrance manufacturer with good positioning in luxury fragrances. The stock gained almost 9% YTD, ZKB Equity Research expects a positive performance ("outperform").
With the ZKB BRC on Holcim, Novartis and Givaudan interested investors can generate attractive coupons - thanks to low correlation of the basket constituents, among other factors - while benefiting from the risk-reducing properties of the barrier structure.
C)BRC on Holcim, Novartis and Givaudan