Here are the cumulative criteria used in MarketScreener's Stock Screener:

  • Composite investor rating of 5 stars (based on a weighted average of the ratings for Fundamentals, Valuation, 1-year EPS Revisions and Visibility),
  • Minimum market capitalization of €6bn,
  • Revenue and EPS growth criteria in the top 50% deciles,
  • Coverage by at least 10 analysts,
  • 2025 and 2027 P/E ratios below 20x.

Publicis

The advertising group ranks first in this ranking. Publicis' qualities were rediscovered in 2021, after the company was modernized by its new management. These successful efforts have made the French company the industry leader at a time when its traditional competitors (WPP, Omnicom, The Interpublic, etc.) were struggling to reinvent themselves. The result was five years of stockmarket gains between 2020 and 2024, including increases of more than 40% in 2021 and 2023. This year has been a little tougher (-17% since January 1). The period of rediscovery is over, and AI has raised questions about the sustainability of the model. However, this has not prevented the company from continuing to deliver exceptional performance despite the global slowdown in advertising.

Publicis is trading at 12.1x 2026 earnings and 11.3x expected 2027 earnings. This is less than the 14.5x of the last ten years, despite the rise in the share price through to 2025. The yield is above average, as is the financial strength. To be more precise, it is difficult to find any fundamental weaknesses in the file (see the summary of ratings here), except perhaps for weaker earnings growth than in recent years.

This stock is for you if you think the current discount is too severe. Stay away if you are convinced that AI will disrupt the advertising landscape at the expense of integrated groups such as Publicis.

Bureau Veritas

The certification company has an excellent overall fundamental rating. But unlike Publicis, its stockmarket performance has been bumpy and its valuation is more generous: 18.7x 2026 and 17.2x 2027. This is above the European average, but well below the company's historical average. Beyond its solid fundamental performance, the market has tended to be wary of the sector in a context of deregulation (in the United States) and deglobalization (BVI is highly exposed to trade flows). This explains the 4% decline this year, which is approximately 16% underperformance relative to the Stoxx Europe 600 index.

The other minor sticking point is rising debt, which is expected to peak at €1.5 billion at the end of the year. However, this represents just over one year of EBITDA and free cash flow generation is solid. BVI should reduce the size of its balance sheet fairly quickly. Conversely, the company has a small leverage on AI, which is little known. Indeed, Bureau Veritas is showing strong growth in the certification of data center start-ups, particularly in the US.

But the market is struggling to grasp the story: the stock is at roughly the same level as in 2021. The case is made for those who like turnarounds.

Eiffage

Active in construction, real estate, and concessions, the group inspires caution every time there is a change of government in France. Although it was penalized in 2024 (-13%), the same cannot be said for 2025 (+28%). Perhaps investors have become accustomed to political instability in France? What is certain is that Eiffage is in a robust position, even if 2025 will not be the best year of the decade. With a P/E multiple of below 9x for 2026 and 2027, we are still quite far from the 10-year average (13x). The growth trajectory is not that of the tech sector, far from it, but management has been able to build a business model that protects margins even when the tide is low. International diversification (30% of business compared with 18% ten years ago) and the strengthening of more profitable activities (particularly in energy) have improved the group's resilience. The debt, which appears somewhat high at first glance, should be viewed in context: it is mainly linked to the concession business, which has relatively good visibility despite the political attacks it occasionally faces.