How are French midcaps holding up in the current economic situation?
If you look at midcap companies in France today, it’s a much happier story than the blue chips. It’s true that market capitalization of midcaps has dropped by 40% since early 2000, but the CAC 40 [index of leading French blue chips] has fallen by 50%. Our study [a recent survey conducted by Ernst & Young for MiddleNext] showed that, on average, midcaps have an operating profit margin of 7%. That’s very solid. And if you look at debt, the companies in the CAC 40 have a gross debt ratio that’s 2.7 times larger than the midcaps. But we don’t have enough exposure with investors. We midcaps are paying a big price for the current crisis, which is not deserved. It’s important to let investors know that our companies are solid. Q: How can you reassure investors, when markets worldwide are in a funk? A: We want to create a new section for midcaps [replacing the Nouveau Marché and the Second Marché, two sections of the Paris exchange where smaller companies now are listed]. We need to rebuild on
