L'Oréal retreats as Jefferies warns of potential de-rating
L'Oréal is among the steepest decliners on the CAC 40 index on Thursday morning after Jefferies lowered its price target on the stock. The broker expressed concerns over a compression of valuation multiples as growth normalizes for the world's leading cosmetics group.
As of 9:50 AM, the shares are down 1.5% at 361.1 euros, compared to a 0.7% decline for the CAC 40 at the same time.
In a research note published overnight, Jefferies stated it expects the robust sector data compiled by Nielsen for the first quarter—which shows L'Oréal outperforming its main competitors in both Europe and North America—to be reflected in the group's first-quarter revenue.
De-rating risk amid decelerating growth
The U.S. broker anticipates like-for-like sales growth of 3.7% for the period. However, it forecasts average organic growth of 4.1% over the next two years, in line with 2025 estimates but below the company's historical performance levels.
This slowdown risks triggering a de-rating of the stock, Jefferies warned. The broker fears the forward P/E ratio could revert to around 22x, down from 26x currently, leading it to cut its price target from 350 to 326 euros.
Its rating on the stock remains at "Underperform".
L'Oréal is the world leading cosmetic group. The group offers skincare products (37.2% of net sales), makeup products (19.1%), haircare products (17.5%), fragrances (14.6%), hair colouring products (7.6%) and other (4%). Net sales break down by family of products as follows:
- consumer cosmetics (36.5%): L'Oréal Paris, Garnier, Maybelline New York, NYX Professional Makeup, Essie Niely, Dark and Lovely, Mixa, MG and Carol's Daughter brands;
- luxury cosmetics (35.4%): Lancôme, Kiehl's, Giorgio Armani Beauty, Yves Saint Laurent Beauté, Biotherm, Helena Rubinstein, Shu Uemura, IT Cosmetics, Urban Decay, Ralph Lauren, Mugler, Viktor&Rolf, Valentino, Azzaro, Prada, Takami, A?sop, etc.;
- active cosmetics (16.4%): La Roche-Posay, Vichy, CeraVe, SkinCeuticals, Skinbetter Science, etc.;
- professional products (11.7%): L'Oréal Professionnel, Kérastase, Redken, Matrix and PureOlogy brands.
Products are marketed through mass distribution and distance selling, selective distribution, hair salons and pharmacies.
At the end of 2025, L'Oréal has 37 production sites worldwide.
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: France (7.3%), Europe (26.5%), North America (26.6%), North Asia (22.9%), Asia/Pacific/Middle East/Africa (9.3%) and Latin America (7.4%).
This super rating is the result of a weighted average of the rankings based on the following ratings: Valuation (Composite), EPS Revisions (4 months), and Visibility (Composite). We recommend that you carefully review the associated descriptions.
Investor
Investor
This super composite rating is the result of a weighted average of the rankings based on the following ratings: Fundamentals (Composite), Valuation (Composite), EPS Revisions (1 year), and Visibility (Composite). We recommend that you carefully review the associated descriptions.
Global
Global
This composite rating is the result of an average of the rankings based on the following ratings: Fundamentals (Composite), Valuation (Composite), Financial Estimates Revisions (Composite), Consensus (Composite) and Visibility (Composite). The company must be covered by at least 4 of these 5 ratings for the calculation to be carried out. We recommend that you carefully review the associated descriptions.
Quality
Quality
This composite rating is the result of an average of rankings based on the following ratings: Returns (Composite), Profitability (Composite) and Quality of Financial Reporting (Composite), and Financial Health (Composite). The company must be covered by at least 2 of these 3 ratings for the calculation to be performed. We recommend that you carefully read the associated descriptions.
ESG MSCI
ESG MSCI
The MSCI ESG score assesses a company’s environmental, social, and governance practices relative to its industry peers. Companies are rated from CCC (laggard) to AAA (leader). This rating helps investors incorporate sustainability risks and opportunities into their investment decisions.
