Imerys: top of the SBF 120, first signs of recovery

(CercleFinance.com) - On Thursday, Imerys reported 'solid' first-quarter results and said it was seeing the first signs of a recovery in demand.


The industrial minerals specialist said its adjusted Ebitda rose by 9% to ?188 million, driven by cost-cutting measures and lower costs.

By way of comparison, analysts at Oddo BHF were expecting earnings of ?166 million.

Sales amounted to 926 million euros, down 5.3% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis, but the Group nonetheless points to a "gradual" recovery in its markets.

Sales for the first quarter of 2024 are thus 1% higher than for the third quarter of 2023, and 4% higher than for the fourth quarter.

We believe we have turned a corner and expect a positive impact from lower interest rates in the second half of the year", said CEO Alessandro Dazza.

Imerys thus expects sales volumes to improve sequentially over the coming quarters, thanks to the stabilization of the European economy and the resilience of activity in the United States and Asia.

In their reaction note, analysts at Oddo BHF spoke of 'the start of a long-awaited revival', and felt that a 'low point' had now been reached.

With a gain of around 10%, the share was the biggest riser on the SBF 120 index on Thursday morning in the wake of this publication.

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