Corticeira Amorim is Lazard’s focus on the Eurozone

Better known for its investment bank, which has taken part in several mergers and acquisitions in Portugal and is preparing the sale of Meo’s owner, the French- and US-based financial group has fund management as its other area of activity. And there are also Portuguese companies on the radar.

Small caps in the Eurozone are one of Lazard Fund Managers’ targets for this year. The small capitalizations have accumulated greater falls than the large ones in recent months and have more potential for appreciation. Among the chosen companies is Corticeira Amorim.

“In the Eurozone, we love the universe of small caps because they have suffered the most in recent months, they have corrected strongly and more than large caps since November. The context for small caps is going to be very positive,” anticipates Domingo Torres, director of Lazard Fund Managers for Spain and Portugal. There is another reason for the preference: “These are the companies that are going to receive the most money from the European Union’s Recovery Fund.”

Corticeira Amorim is one of the companies present in the European Small Cap Fund, due to the company’s profile. “Corticeira Amorim has a leading position in its market and an evolution that symbolises what we want to have in the fund,” Domingo Torres justifies. The fund’s latest report card, dated April, notes that the Portuguese company was one of the three listed companies where it reinforced its investment the most.

It should be noted that in the Fund, the world leader in cork production and transformation is joined by companies such as Italy’s De Longhi, France’s Ipsos and Austria’s Rosenbauer.

Besides Corticeira Amorim, Lazard has qualified positions in other two Portuguese companies: REN (7% stake) and Galp (2% stake).