LVMH's quarterly report, released on Monday evening, was a disappointment with worse results than expected. When trading on the CAC40 in Paris opened on Tuesday, the stock plummeted over 8 percent.
The significant decline meant that luxury competitor Hermès took over the title of "France's highest-valued company", reports Bloomberg. Early on Tuesday afternoon, LVMH had a market capitalization of 246.4 billion euros and Hermès had one of 248 billion euros.
For Hermès, the shift in power is also a confirmation that the company's struggle to remain independent from LVMH was justified.
In 2010, LVMH's largest shareholder and CEO Bernard Arnault revealed that he had secretly acquired a stake in the renowned manufacturer of silk scarves. Arnault's revelation prompted Hermès family members to unite. They eventually managed to persuade Arnault, dubbed the "wolf in cashmere" for his often ruthless takeovers of venerable brands, to sell his shares a few years later.
