Monday, 18 September 2023 Reading time : 2 minutes

2023 has not been a veray exciting year on the Swiss stock market so far. The SMI® is up a good 3.5% (ytd), while the Swiss Performance Index®, which includes most of the remaining Swiss stocks in addition to the heavyweights from the leading index, is up about 6%.

However, not all constituents of these indices can show positive performance. The shares of large corporations such as Roche and Zurich, as well as those of smaller companies, are trading below their prices at the beginning of the year. Nevertheless - or maybe because of this - favorable opportunities are emerging.

Roche (-10.8% ytd)
Although the decline in sales in H1 2023 was in line with expectations, the shares of the pharmaceutical group are still trading a good 10% below their price at the beginning of the year, despite some recoveries mid-year. However, the analyst consensus is still positive - among other things, the filled pipeline and the high productivity of the Research & Development units contribute to this.

Zurich (-3.4% ytd)
Although the largest of the Swiss insurance companies outperforms its domestic competitors in terms of profit, its share price development lags behind. Still, thanks to good positioning and positive developments in various areas, the analyst consensus is that there is catch-up potential.

Tecan (-21.5% ytd)
Since the beginning of the year, the company which specializes in the manufacture of systems for laboratory automation, has suffered significant declines in its share price. This development is a manifestation of the skepticism of some market participants, some of whom had even expected a profit warning. In mid-August, Tecan presented its results for the first half of the year, including organic growth of +6.8%. Positive demand momentum is expected for the second half of the year, and ZKB Equity Research remains positive.

DKSH (-6.8% ytd)
The share of the holding company DKSH, which offers services in connection with expansions to Asia, has also not been able to impress with its performance so far. However, ZKB Equity Research still sees an attractive investment case, partly due to the company's exposure to growth markets such as healthcare and specialty chemicals.

SGS (-5.3% ytd)
The group is in a sweet spot - as a global leader in the growing TIC (Testing, Inspection, Certification) market, the company can not only benefit from growth momentum, but also capture potential consolidation opportunities as market participants outsource activities that fall into this sector. At the same time, there is potential in terms of margin and efficiency improvements.

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BRC on Roche, Zurich, Tecan, DKSH and SGS

• 8% coupon p.a.
• 60% barrier
• 18 months maturity
• Termsheet

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indicative data, prices as of 18.09.2023, 14:30.