Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 11th December 2024

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mixed following a soft US handover as participants brace for the US CPI data, although Chinese markets continued to benefit from the easing in China's overall monetary policy stance. ASX 200 was on a softer footing with almost all of its sectors in the red, whilst IT lagged following a similar sectoral performance stateside. Nikkei 225 was subdued but within narrow parameters whilst Japanese PPI topped expectations, with eyes on next week's BoJ. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp both initially traded firmer in a continuation of the optimism from Politburo on Monday revising its overall monetary policy stance. Upside for the indices however were modest and capped ahead of the Central Economic Work Conference, whilst the China A50 faded earlier gains and dipped into the red and was later joined by the Hang Seng.

Autos - China Nov vehicle sales +11.7% Y/Y (prev. +7% in Oct); Jan-Nov sales +3.7% Y/Y (prev. +10.8% a year ago), according to the Industry Association

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX: +0.02% at 20,349, FTSE 100: -0.86% at 8,280, CAC 40: -1.14% at 7,395, Euro Stoxx 50: -0.68% at 4,952, AEX: -0.15% at 893, IBEX 35: -0.38% at 11,966, FTSE MIB: -0.10% at 34,525, SMI: -0.95% at 11,642, PSI: -0.19% at 6,343.

SECTORS: Consumer Stpl -0.24%, Energy -0.28%, Financials -0.39%, Utilities -0.40%, Materials -0.41%, IT -0.45%, Healthcare -0.46%, Telecoms -0.85%, Consumer Disc -0.88%, Industrials -1.12%

FTSE 100

OTHER UK COMPANIES

SSP (SSPG LN) - Planned IPO in India of travel food services; IPO planned for Spring 2025. (Newswires)

Tui (TUI LN) - FY24 (EUR): Underlying EBIT 1.30bln (exp. 1.29bln). Revenue 23.2bln (exp. 22.8bln). Co. says summer bookings are well ahead at +7%. Co. guides initial FY25 revenue +5-10% Y/Y. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

IAG (IAG LN) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank

Reckitt (RKT LN) upgraded to Buy from Hold at HSBC

DAX

Adidas (ADS GY) - Tax authorities raided several Adidas (ADS GY) locations, including the corporate headquarters in Herzogenaurach, via Manager Magazin. Adidas told Bloomberg that it had been in contact with authorities for several years and is providing them with relevant documents. (Manager Magazin/Bloomberg) Shares -2% in pre-market trade

Talanx (TLX GY) - Announces new dividend policy for FY24, increased to EUR 2.70/shr. Target dividend for 2027 set at EUR 4/shr. Expected group net income for FY24 exceeds EUR 1.9bln. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Carl Zeiss Meditec (AFX GY) - FY (EUR): Adj. EBIT 245.9mln (prev. 362.9mln Y/Y), Dividend 0.10 Y/Y (prev. 1.10/shr Y/Y). In 2024/25 expects EBIT and EBITA margin to remain stable to slightly higher. (Newswires)

Heidelberg Materials (HEI GY) - Cos' JV cement Australia expands footprint with acquisition of BGC Cementitous. (Newswires)

Metro AG (B4B GY) - FY 2024 (EUR): Sales 31.03bln (exp. 31bln), Adj. EBITDA 1.06bln, EBITDA 1.12bln (exp. 1.1bln); growth targets by 2030 confirmed. FY24/25 outlook: Sales growth 3-7%. Slight increase in adj. EBITDA vs. previous year. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Air France (AF FP) - Co. is optimistic about the Brazilian market for 2025 after positive results in the region this year, according to an exec cited by Reuters. (Reuters)

Sanofi (SAN FP) - Two combination vaccine candidates for prevention of influenza and COVID-19 granted Fast Track designation in the US. (Sanofi)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Atos (ATO FP) - Announces completion of the settlement and delivery of its EUR 233mln rights issue. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

ADP (ADP FP) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank

Publicis (PUB FP) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan Chase

Technip Energies (TE FP) downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JPMorgan Chase

PAN EUROPE

ACS (ACS SM) - New York opts for ACS urban air mobility. (Newswires)

Anima (ANIM IM) - Caltagirone is ready to raise his stake in the co. up to 9.9%, according to Corriere Della Sera citing sources. (Corriere Della Sera)

ASML (ASML NA) - Rapidus Chairman says delivery of ASML EUV is to begin on December 18th. (Newswires)

Ferrari (RACE IM) - CEO doesn't anticipate change in demand with Trump administration coming in. (Newswires)

Inditex (ITX SM) - 9M (EUR): EBIT 5.67bln (exp. 5.8bln), Net Income 4.45bln (exp. 4.53bln), Revenue 27.4bln (exp. 27.6bln). Notes Nov 1-Dec 9 sales +9% vs +10.5% during 9m. Affirms guidance. (Newswires)

Stellantis (STLAM IM/STLAP FP) - Co. is said to be planning to apply for membership in ACEA. (ANSA)

Vidrala (VID SM) - Amount of capital increase totals EUR 1.6mln. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

SMI

Sonova (SOON SW) - Sonova appoints Elodie Carr-Cingari as new CFO, effective no later than July 2025. (Sonova)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX -0.30% at 6,035, NDX -0.34% at 21,368, DJIA -0.35% at 44,248, RUT -0.42% at 2,383.

SECTORS: Real Estate -1.63%, Technology -1.26%, Materials -0.93%, Utilities -0.82%, Energy -0.62%, Health -0.46%, Industrials -0.22%, Financials -0.11%, Consumer Discretionary +0.14%, Consumer Staples +0.5%, Communication Services +2.61%.

General Motors (GM) - General Motors is halting funding for its Cruise robotaxi business, citing high scaling costs and competition. Challenges, including accidents and regulatory issues, have impacted Cruise's operations and workforce significantly. It will combine its Cruise and GM technical teams into a single effort, and will refocus on autonomous personal vehicles. The proposed plan is expected to be completed in H1 2025. (Newswires)

GE Vernova (GEV) - Shares slipped 2.7% afterhours following outlook update. GE Vernova reiterates FY24 revenue outlook of trending to the higher-end of its USD 34-35bln range (exp. 35bln); narrows FY24 adj. EBITDA outlook to 5.5-6% (prev. saw 5-7%); continues to see FY24 FCF towards the higher-end of its USD 1.3-1.7bln range. Sees FY25 revenue between 36-37bln (exp. 37.3bln); sees FY25 adj. EBITDA margin in the high-single digits (exp. 8.8%); lifts its FY25 FCF outlook to between 2.0-2.5bln (prev. saw 1.2-1.8bln). By FY28, sees around USD 45bln of annual revenue (exp. 43.7bln), and a 14% adj. EBITDA margin. Board approves an initial USD 6bln share buyback authorisation, and initiates a USD 0.25/shr quarterly dividend. (Newswires)

Google (GOOG)/Microsoft (MSFT) - Google reportedly asked FTC to block Microsoft's exclusive cloud deal with OpenAI, according to The Information. (The Information)

JPMorgan (JPM) exec says NII outlook has firmed up and expects 2025 NII to be about USD 2bln higherSystemwide deposits could be neutral to higher next year. Sees Q4 NII and expenses a little bit better than consensus. IB fees will increase about 45% vs. last year in Q4. Markets revenue in Q4 +15% Y/Y. (Newswires)

Kroger (KR)/Albertsons (ACI) - Kroger's (KR) USD 24.5bln Albertsons (ACI) deal blocked by federal judge. (Newswires)

Walgreens (WBA) - Reportedly in talks to sell itself to Sycamore Partners, via WSJ. (WSJ)

US Steel (X), Nippon Steel (NPSCY) - President Biden is expected to block Nippon Steel's USD 14.1bln acquisition of US Steel on national security grounds. The Committee on Foreign Investment will refer its findings by late December, potentially prompting litigation from both companies. Nippon Steel criticised political interference over national security concerns, and emphasised the need to prioritise genuine security interests over politics. Elsewhere, Japan Times reports that Nippon offered a USD 5,000 bonus per US Steel employee if its acquisition succeeds, but the United Steelworkers union condemned the move as "union-busting bribery."

11 Dec 2024 - 06:42- Exclusive- Source: Newsquawk