Top of the Street: L'Oreal, Unilever, Rockwool, Snam, Aedifica
18/02/2026 12:41
Corrects Aedifica Reuters Intsrument Code in last bullet A round-up of notable broker activity this morning from Europe's top-ranked* analysts: ** HSBC upgrades French cosmetics group L'Oreal OREP.PA to "buy" from "hold", saying the valuation has stalled despite steady business growth and the potential to outperform in 2026 ** Berenberg downgrades consumer goods group Unilever ULVR.L to "hold" from "buy", arguing the recent share performance is already largely reflected in the stock's valuation after the company's multi-year shift into a "faster-growing and more profitable business" ** UBS raises Danish stone wool products maker Rockwool ROCKb.CO to "buy" from "neutral", pointing to clear signs of accelerating growth, as Q4 margins appear to have bottomed, capex uncertainty has been resolved, and the Russia overhang has lifted ** Goldman Sachs upgrades Italian energy infrastructure company Snam SRG.MI to "buy" from "hold", as it sees room for higher core investment across Italy's gas system that could support stronger long-term results ** KBC Securities cuts Belgian healthcare property firm Aedifica AOO.BR to "accumulate" from "buy" and removes it from its Dynamic Top Pick List, citing reduced upside after AED outperformed the EPRA Developed index by more than 15% (*Analyst rankings from Thomson Reuters StarMine. The scale is from 1-star to 5-star with 5 being the best. Analysts are ranked on earnings accuracy as well as relative performance of recommendations over trailing 12-month & 24-month periods.) (Reporting by Olivier Cherfan and Philippe Leroy Beaulieu) ((olivier.cherfan@thomsonreuters.com))