A little more tech in the CAC 40. Edenred will enter the three-color flagship index on June 19, instead of Vivendi, Euronext announced Thursday evening. It had already been a few quarters since the inventor of the Ticket Restaurant was expected to integrate the cream of the Paris market, which had not seen any movement since the appointment of Eurofins Scientific, in place of Atos, in September 2021.
For Vivendi, this exit sanctions a sad fate on the stock market – the action has lost a quarter of its value in one year. The media group, whose main shareholder is Vincent Bolloré, today weighs 9 billion euros when Edenred exceeds 15 billion in market capitalization, after a remarkable increase of 22% since the start of 2023 and… 138% in five years. .
This journey also illustrates the profound changes that have taken place within this former division of the Accor hotel group, moving from paper checks to virtual payment, with a range of services that has considerably expanded. “In seven years, we have completely transformed the house, explains to The Express CEO Bertrand Dumazy. We were only doing Ticket Restaurant, it now represents only 44% of our total turnover.” Edenred also offers its 52 million users around the world a wide variety of payment solutions, from gift cards the mobility ticket.Among the 45 countries where this group of 12,000 employees operates, France accounts for only 16% of its income.
Inflation and telework effect
Contrary to most industries, activity has benefited from inflation: the situation encourages business leaders to look for ways to improve the purchasing power of their employees, without necessarily going through the box salary increases. Telework has also prompted a number of large accounts to switch from the traditional canteen to the Ticket Restaurant.
By winning its admission card to the CAC, Edenred will gain visibility, and not just with international investors. Times are tough for employers in the face of talent shortages, and increased brand awareness will be welcome. “We are growing strongly – still + 27% in the first quarter – and we need staff. We are recruiting digital engineers, digital marketing specialists and sales people… between 2,000 and 3,000 people in total this year”, explains Bertrand Dumazy, who also hopes “to have access to new and less expensive sources of financing”.