Bouygues Shares Climb to €51.48 Following Barclays' Target Upgrade
Bouygues' stock rose by 1.14% to €51.48 on Thursday afternoon, amidst a CAC 40 increase of 0.76%. The stock is among the day's top performers in the index, following a recent target upgrade by Barclays. Over the year, the stock has maintained a lead of more than 38%.
Barclays Raises Target to €53 After a Lackluster Week
Barclays has increased its price target on Bouygues from €51 to €53, while maintaining its market-weight rating, according to a note dated May 12. The new target offers a limited upside potential of about 3% compared to the current price. This move by the British firm comes in a context of broader revisions for the stock: at the beginning of May, Oddo BHF had a target of €61, indicating a potential close to 18%. Bouygues remains on a challenging week (-2.87% over seven days), following the publication of its first-quarter revenue on May 7 (€12.2 billion, down 1.7% at constant exchange rates). The group highlighted a net debt reduction of €2 billion over the year. In terms of contracts, Colas Rail won a €1.2 billion railway contract in Sweden at the beginning of May, and Destia, the Finnish subsidiary, secured €200 million for the Vantaa tramway project.
Stock Reaches Its MM20 at €51.31 in a Still Troubled Construction Market
In terms of moving averages, the stock price has returned to its MM20 at €51.31, after dipping below this benchmark last week. The gap above the MM50 (€50.67) remains moderate at 1.6%, while the MM200 at €44.04 illustrates the medium-term upward trend, with a gap of nearly 17%. The RSI at 49 indicates a neutral configuration, without extremes. The resistance is at €53, a level now aligned with Barclays' revised target. Bouygues operates in a continuously troubled construction environment in France: construction climate at -18 in April, production down by 3.5% year-on-year, order books at -33, and housing permits down by 2% over a rolling twelve months. Listed peers are following suit, with VINCI up by 0.79% and Eiffage by 0.41%. The next calendar event: the publication of the semi-annual results 2026 on July 30.
