Dassault Systèmes: Capital Markets Day Reveals CEO Change, but Digitizing Reality Remains the Focus

Dassault Systèmes’ Capital Markets Day was filled with walkthroughs of the company’s digital twin tactics to stay relevant in the changing world of computer-aided design, or CAD, and product lifecycle management, or PLM. But on top of product strategy talks came news of the company’s appointment of Pascal Daloz as CEO, effective January 2024. Daloz is currently Dassault’s deputy CEO and has been a member of the board of directors since 2020. Current chairman and CEO Bernard Charlès will remain chairman of the board after the transition. Overall, we think the management change will do little to rock the boat in terms of the company’s overall strategy. We reiterate our EUR 37 fair value estimate for the wide-moat name, which places the stock in 3-star, fairly valued territory. For investors looking for entry points into this moaty market long dominated by few players, we recommend Autodesk shares, which we believe are undervalued given our $240 fair value estimate.