European equities on Euronext are under pressure today, 18 November 2025, as investors digest a fresh wave of capital‑raising, buybacks and a blockbuster cross‑border merger against a backdrop of global risk‑off sentiment.
By late morning in Europe, the Euronext 100 index is down roughly 1.3%, trading around 1,689–1,690 points, according to live data from Euronext and benchmark providers. [1] The broader sell‑off is mirrored across the continent, with the STOXX 600 off about 1.1% as investors worry about stretched tech valuations and fewer near‑term Fed rate cuts. [2]
Below is a detailed look at how Euronext’s main markets and key stocks are moving today, 18.11.2025.
1. Indices summary: CAC 40, AEX and Euronext 100 under pressure
Pan‑European backdrop
Reuters and other market commentators report that European shares are extending losses today as fears over an “AI bubble” in tech, doubts about early U.S. rate cuts and a slide in Bitcoin below $90,000 all weigh on risk assets. [3]
Key Euronext benchmarks (late morning, 18 November 2025):
- Euronext 100 (N100) – around 1,689–1,690 points, down about 1.3% on the day, with climate and ESG‑linked indices on Euronext Paris showing similar declines. [4]
- CAC 40 (Euronext Paris) – trading near 8,023 points, roughly –1.2%, according to Euronext and Dow Jones data. [5]
- AEX (Euronext Amsterdam) – around 933.9 points, down 1.21%, with an intraday range of 931.14–935.93. [6]
The selling is broad‑based. Financials are hit by falling expectations of near‑term Fed cuts, while growth and tech names face profit‑taking after a strong year‑to‑date rally. [7]
2. Euronext N.V.: Buyback programme officially begins
Euronext’s own stock – now a constituent of the CAC 40 and Euronext 100 – is in focus as the group’s long‑trailed share repurchase programme formally kicks off today.
- On 6 November 2025, Euronext announced a share repurchase programme of up to €250 million, aiming to buy back approximately 2% of its ordinary shares. All repurchased shares will be cancelled to reduce the company’s share capital. [8]
- The programme runs from 18 November 2025 to no later than 31 March 2026 and will be executed on Euronext Paris. [9]
According to recent price history, Euronext N.V. (ENX.PA) closed last at €125.90, a marginal –0.08% move on the day, with recent sessions showing tight ranges around €125–€127. [10]
The buyback follows six consecutive quarters of revenue growth, which management has highlighted as evidence of balance‑sheet strength and the flexibility to return capital while still pursuing strategic projects such as the Athens Exchange bid and index expansion. [11]
3. Eutelsat: €828m reserved capital increase reshapes the shareholder base
One of the biggest single‑stock stories on Euronext Paris today is Eutelsat Communications (ETL.PA).
This morning, Eutelsat’s Board approved the launch of a €828 million equity raise via a reserved capital increase at €4.00 per share, the first leg of a €1.5 billion equity package. [12]
Key details of the transaction:
- The reserved tranche will be subscribed by:
- The French State
- Bharti Space Limited
- The UK Government
- CMA CGM Participations
- Le Fonds Stratégique de Participations (FSP) [13]
- Post‑transaction indicative stakes:
- French State: 29.65%
- Bharti Space: 17.88%
- UK Government: 10.89%
- CMA CGM: 7.46%
- FSP: 4.99% [14]
- A €672 million rights issue is expected to follow, with the same investors having committed to take up their full rights – representing more than 70% of the planned rights offering. [15]
The equity raise is designed to delever the company and fund investment in its Low Earth Orbit (LEO) connectivity strategy. [16]
On the market, Eutelsat shares are trading lower: one Paris real‑time quote shows around €3.07, down roughly 2.2% in late‑morning trade, as investors price in dilution ahead of the rights issue. [17]
4. Nexans: New share buyback programme
Cable manufacturer Nexans (Euronext Paris) adds to today’s theme of corporate capital management.
- Nexans announced a share buyback programme covering up to 128,000 shares, authorised by its 15 May 2025 AGM. [18]
- The programme runs from 18 November 2025 to 28 February 2026 and will be executed by an investment service provider. The main purpose is to satisfy obligations under free‑share and performance‑share plans for employees and executives. [19]
Market data from MarketScreener shows Nexans trading around €120.70, down roughly 0.8%, suggesting a fairly muted initial reaction as investors view the buyback as routine compensation‑related activity rather than a major capital‑return event. [20]
5. Edenred and ING: Big buyback engines keep running
Edenred (Euronext Paris – CAC 40, Euronext 100)
Edenred, the digital corporate‑services platform, published a regulated press release at 08:30 CET announcing a fresh share buyback mandate. [21]
Highlights:
- The mandate is part of a previously announced up to €600 million buyback programme running until November 2027. [22]
- A new agreement signed on 17 November 2025 entrusts an investment services provider with an initial €100 million tranche, scheduled to run until 31 October 2026, with scope to extend the mandate through 30 November 2027. [23]
- By 17 November 2025, Edenred had already repurchased 11.8 million shares for a total consideration of €399 million under the broader programme. On an indicative basis, €100 million corresponds to about 5.2 million shares, or 2.19% of the share capital at the prior closing price. [24]
Edenred underscores that all shares bought back will be cancelled, reinforcing its long‑term capital‑return story – and adding steady buy‑side support to Euronext order books even on a risk‑off day.
ING Group (Euronext Amsterdam)
Dutch banking group ING released an update at 08:00 CET on the progress of its €1.1 billion share buyback programme announced on 30 October 2025. [25]
For the week 10–14 November 2025:
- 2,056,087 shares were repurchased at an average price of €22.67, totalling about €46.6 million.
- In total, 5,131,310 shares have been bought back so far at an average of €22.25, corresponding to €114.2 million or roughly 10.4% of the programme’s maximum value.
These ongoing buybacks mean that even as indices fall, underlying demand from corporate issuers remains strong, particularly in financials and business‑services names.
6. AkzoNobel–Axalta: A $25 billion paint giant with Euronext roots
A major M&A story with direct Euronext implications landed today: Dutch coatings group AkzoNobel (Akzo Nobel N.V., AEX component) has agreed an all‑stock “merger of equals” with U.S. peer Axalta Coating Systems.
According to AkzoNobel’s own release and Reuters:
- The combined company will have an enterprise value of about $25 billion.
- Pro‑forma annual revenue is projected at around $17 billion, with adjusted EBITDA of roughly $3.3 billion and €1.5 billion in adjusted free cash flow.
- AkzoNobel shareholders will receive a $2.5 billion cash dividend and own 55% of the merged entity; Axalta investors will hold the remaining 45%.
- The new group will initially be dual‑listed on Euronext Amsterdam and the New York Stock Exchange, with dual headquarters in Amsterdam and Philadelphia, before ultimately consolidating on the NYSE.
For Euronext investors, the deal is significant:
- AkzoNobel is a key member of the AEX and Euronext 100, so any share‑price volatility around the deal feeds directly into benchmark index performance.
- The possibility of a future migration of primary listing to the U.S. adds a medium‑term question about index composition and liquidity on Euronext Amsterdam.
Early quotes suggest AkzoNobel is slightly lower, echoing a modest risk‑off tone, while investors weigh promised $600 million in cost synergies against execution and regulatory risk.
7. B&S Group: Tender offer declared unconditional – Euronext Amsterdam set to lose another listing
In the small‑cap space, B&S Group S.A. (B&S Group, listed on Euronext Amsterdam) has taken another decisive step towards going private.
A joint press release today from B&S and ELBF Investments Netherlands B.V., an affiliate of Sarabel, announced that the public offer for all B&S shares has been declared unconditional.
Key points:
- Following settlement, the offeror’s group will hold 81,858,967 shares.
- Settlement is scheduled for 24 November 2025, with a post‑acceptance period from 19 November to 2 December 2025 for remaining shareholders.
- Earlier documentation shows an all‑cash offer price of €6.15 per share (cum dividend), representing a substantial premium to pre‑offer levels; as of 14 November, Sarabel and affiliates already controlled about 97.25% of the outstanding capital.
With the offer now unconditional and free float minimal, delisting from Euronext Amsterdam looks increasingly likely once remaining minority shareholders have been squeezed out, continuing a trend of take‑privates in the Benelux mid‑cap universe.
8. Other Euronext‑regulated news: a busy morning tape
The live Euronext Paris and Amsterdam feeds show a dense stream of company‑specific regulatory news today, much of it linked to share‑buyback or capital‑management activity:
- On Euronext Amsterdam, updates include:
- ING Bank Śląski acquiring the remaining 55% stake in Goldman Sachs TFI, underscoring consolidation in Central European asset management.
- Arcadis reporting transactions under its own ongoing buyback programme.
- On Euronext Paris, alongside Nexans and Edenred:
- Elis disclosed trading in its own shares relating to prior buyback activity.
- Additional issuers published standard “information regarding executed transactions within the framework of a share buyback programme”, highlighting the continued prevalence of buybacks across French blue chips and mid caps.
Taken together, today’s tape underlines how buybacks have become a central feature of Euronext’s liquidity profile, even as indices move lower.
9. Macro drivers: Tech valuation jitters and Fed uncertainty
Today’s weakness on Euronext is not happening in isolation:
- European tech and growth stocks are tracking a global unwind in AI‑linked trades as investors question stretched valuations and await Nvidia’s upcoming earnings.
- Banking and cyclical names are under pressure as hawkish commentary from U.S. Federal Reserve officials reduces odds of a near‑term rate cut, while a delayed U.S. jobs report adds to uncertainty.
- Risk appetite has also been hit by a sharp move in crypto markets, with Bitcoin dropping below $90,000, feeding a broader “risk‑off” narrative that spills into European equity futures.
For Euronext specifically, that means:
- Index heavyweights with global tech and industrial exposure – such as ASML, STMicroelectronics, Schneider Electric and others in the Euronext 100 – are contributing disproportionately to today’s declines.
- At the same time, defensive buyback and dividend stories (Euronext, Edenred, ING, Nexans, etc.) are providing pockets of relative resilience.
10. What it all means for Euronext investors today
For 18 November 2025, several themes stand out on Euronext:
- Risk‑off mood, but orderly trade
Indices like the Euronext 100, CAC 40 and AEX are all down around 1–1.3%, in line with pan‑European benchmarks, but there is no obvious sign of disorderly price action or liquidity stress. - Capital allocation front and centre
- Euronext’s own €250m buyback launches today.
- Eutelsat is raising €828m now and a further €672m by rights issue, reshaping its shareholder base.
- Edenred, ING and Nexans add to the “corporates are buying their own stock” narrative.
- M&A reshapes the Euronext landscape
- The AkzoNobel–Axalta merger will create a $25bn coatings giant with deep roots on Euronext Amsterdam, even if the centre of gravity eventually shifts toward New York.
- The B&S Group transaction highlights the ongoing stream of take‑privates and delistings in the Benelux mid‑cap space.
- Index composition and flows will matter more in 2026
With Euronext now itself part of the CAC 40 and substantial corporate transactions in the pipeline, index‑tracking investors will need to watch how new buybacks, capital raises and M&A shift weightings within the Euronext 100 and national benchmarks.
Final note
All figures and moves above refer to today, Tuesday 18 November 2025, based on intraday data and regulatory disclosures available at the time of writing. Market levels may fluctuate into the close.
This article is for information and news purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always consult a qualified financial adviser or conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
References
1. live.euronext.com, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.reuters.com, 4. live.euronext.com, 5. in.marketscreener.com, 6. www.investing.com, 7. www.reuters.com, 8. www.finanznachrichten.de, 9. www.finanznachrichten.de, 10. www.investing.com, 11. www.reuters.com, 12. www.businesswire.com, 13. www.businesswire.com, 14. www.businesswire.com, 15. www.businesswire.com, 16. www.businesswire.com, 17. www.zonebourse.com, 18. www.globenewswire.com, 19. www.globenewswire.com, 20. www.marketscreener.com, 21. www.webdisclosure.com, 22. www.webdisclosure.com, 23. www.webdisclosure.com, 24. www.webdisclosure.com, 25. www.ing.com
