LVMH briefly overtaken by Hermes in market capitalization as sales disappoint
PARIS (Reuters) -LVMH briefly lost its position on Tuesday as Europe's largest luxury company in terms of market capitalization after being overtaken by rival Hermes on investor pessimism after disappointing first-quarter revenue from the sector bellwether. LVMH, whose high-end brands include Louis Vuitton and Dior, jewellery brand Tiffany & Co. and beauty chain Sephora, missed expectations for first-quarter sales as U.S. shoppers curbed purchases of beauty products and cognac while sales in China remained weak. LVMH shares dropped over 8% in morning trading, bringing its market capitalization down to 243.9 billion euros, compared to 244.4 billion euros for Hermes, before LVMH recovered to 247 billion euros.