Valmet Corp.

European stock markets closed higher on Friday, recovering from the sharp drop in the previous session, supported by strong corporate earnings. The STOXX 600 index closed at 644.51 points, up 0.82%, while Germany's DAX index surged 1.36% after SAP shares jumped 10% on higher-than-expected growth in cloud order backlog for the second quarter. European technology stocks rose 1.7%, rebounding from earlier declines, despite disappointing results from STMicroelectronics and BE Semiconductor. Deutsche Bank analysts warned that capital spending by tech giants is no longer supported solely by free cash flow, and low-cost open-source AI is seriously threatening business models. Meanwhile, three European Central Bank policymakers signaled that another rate hike may be necessary due to persistent inflation risks, with markets pricing in around a 70% chance of a 0.25% increase by the end of 2026. Valmet shares surged 22% after results beat expectations and the company announced plans to spin off a business, while Securitas shares fell 11% after profit missed forecasts, and Neste dropped 6.4% on a slight earnings miss.

Infosys Limited has entered a long-term collaboration with process-industry technology provider Valmet to modernize Valmet's core IT services and deliver end-to-end IT transformation. The initiative, announced on June 16, 2026, aims to improve operational efficiency and align IT operations with business priorities under Valmet's "Lead the Way" strategy. Infosys will deploy its Infosys Topaz Fabric agentic services suite to add intelligence across IT operations with a human-in-the-loop governance approach, and will use its Infosys Cobalt cloud platform to build scalable and secure cloud foundations. The partnership is expected to cut operational costs, optimize resources, and support proactive management of Valmet's enterprise-wide IT operations while building a more resilient IT foundation.

Analysts at TD Cowen, Stifel, BMO Capital, and Susquehanna have trimmed their price targets on Infosys by about $1 to $5, while the Fair Value anchor remains unchanged at ₹1,460.95. The modest cuts reflect fine-tuning of assumptions rather than a wholesale change in thesis, with revenue growth adjusted from 3.48% to 4.05%, net profit margin lowered from 16.54% to 16.22%, and the future P/E multiple raised from 23.51x to 24.13x. Infosys also announced a final dividend of ₹25 per share for the year ended March 31, 2026, and issued fiscal 2027 guidance for constant-currency revenue growth of 1.5% to 3.5% and an operating margin of 20% to 22%. The company recently signed a long-term collaboration with Valmet Oyj to modernize core IT services, extended its AI and digital partnership with Roland Garros through 2031, and announced a collaboration with OpenAI to combine OpenAI models with Infosys Topaz Fabric for software engineering and DevOps automation.