Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 1st August 2025

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mostly subdued following the weak handover from US peers and as participants digested the latest Trump tariff adjustments ahead of the deadline and with the key US Non-Farm Payrolls report on the horizon. ASX 200 was pressured with underperformance in tech, healthcare and financials leading the declines in most sectors as sentiment is dampened amid trade uncertainty. Nikkei 225 slumped at the open but was well off today's worst levels with a rebound facilitated by recent currency weakness. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were lacklustre mood following the latest S&P Global China General Manufacturing PMI (formerly sponsored by Caixin) which missed forecasts and surprisingly returned to contractionary territory.

Chinese PMI - Chinese Caixin Manufacturing PMI Final (Jul) 49.5 vs. Exp. 50.4 (Prev. 50.4). (Newswires)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: Euro Stoxx 50 -1.30% at 5,323, Dax 40 -0.73% at 24,084, FTSE 100 -0.05% at 9,133, CAC 40 -1.14% at 7,772, FTSE MIB -1.56% at 40,988, IBEX 35 +0.16% at 14,403, PSI +0.65% at 7,712, SMI -0.86% at 11,828, AEX -0.81% at 902

SECTORS: Energy 0.05%, Financials -0.04%, Utilities -0.13%, Industrials -0.22%, Telecoms -0.51%, Consumer Stpl -1.03%, Healthcare -1.45%, Materials -1.49%, IT -1.49%, Consumer Disc -2.37% 

FTSE 100

Rio Tinto (RIO LN) - Unifor members ratify new contract with Rio Tinto; bargaining committee secured wage increases of over 16% over the term of the four-year agreement. (Newswires) 

Shell (SHEL LN) - Co. completed sale of Colonial Enterprises to Brookfield subsidiary. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Taylor Wimpey (TW/ LN) downgraded to Hold from Add at Peel Hunt

DAX

Bayer (BAYN GY) - Co. said it has allocated an additional EUR 1.2bln in provisions to address ongoing litigations in the US over its Roundup weed killer. FY25: On Sales, the Co. said it now anticipates annual sales of EUR 46-48bln (prev. forecast 45-47bln), EBITDA 9.7-10.2bln (prev. guided 9.5-10bln). Continues to evaluate the impact of current geopolitical developments, and tariffs. (Newswires)

Evonik (EVK GY) - Q2 (EUR): Net Income 160mln (prev. 234mln Y/Y), Adj. EBITDA 509mln (exp. 516mln, prev. 578mln Y/Y), Revenue 3.50bln (exp. 3.75bln, prev. 3.93bln Y/Y). FY Outlook: Adj. EBITDA to be at the lower end of previously guided 2-2.3bln range. Notes that economic situation clearly deteriorated in May and June. CapEx will be reduced by EUR 100mln to about EUR 750mln in 2025. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Daimler Truck (DTG GY) - Q2 (EUR): Adj. EBIT 1.11bln (exp. 1.06bln). Sees FY25 EBIT for entire Co. between EUR 3.6-4.1bln (prev. guided 4.7bln). Co. reduces outlook due to North America weakness. Industrial business FCF forecasted between EUR 1.5-2bln. Updated guidance is based on assumption that it will continue to operate under current USMCA framework. Now sees North American truck forecast to 280k (prev. guided 260-290k). (Newswires) Shares -6% in pre-market trade

Heidelberg Materials (HEI GY) - Heidelberg Materials North America to acquire Burnco's Edmonton assets. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Axa (CS FP) - H1 (EUR): Adj. Net Income 4.47bln (exp. 4.44bln, prev. 4.45bln Y/Y), Revenue 64.5bln (prev. 59.9bln Y/Y). Confirms acquisition of Prima; will acquire 51% stake for EUR 0.5bln; exp. to be completed end-2025. Expected to have impact of -6bps on Axa's Solvency II Ratio. (Newswires)

Campari (CPR IM) - H1 (EUR): Sales 1.52bln (prev. 1.52bln Y/Y), Adj. EBITDA 427mln (prev. 418mln Y/Y). Co. confirms its 2025 target. CEO says will update strategic priorities in November. CFO says is not thinking about increasing prices to offset tariffs, due to low consumer confidence in the US. (Newswires)

Renault (RNO FP) - Nissan Motor (7201 JT) divests stake in Chennai plant to Renault, which now fully owns the plant. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Atos (ATO FP) - H1 (EUR): Net Income -696mln (prev. -1.94bln Y/Y), Revenue 4.02bln (prev. 4.96bln Y/Y).

Euronext (ENX FP) - Q2 (EUR): Revenue 465.8mln (exp. 457mln), Adj. EBITDA 297.3mln (exp. 288.1mln), Net Income 183.8mln (exp. 172.7mln). (Newswires)

Legrand (LR FP) - Co. to buy a majority stake in Cogelec; no terms. (Newswires)

Saint Gobain (SGO FP) - H1 2025 (EUR): Op. income 2.8bln, +5% Y/Y, EBITDA 3.82bln, sales were up 3.4% in C.C and 1.7% as reported at 23.9bln; confirmed 2025 outlook, expecting an operating margin of more than 11%. (Newswires)

Teleperformance (TEP FP) - H1 (EUR): Revenue 5.11bln, -0.8% Y/Y, EPS 4.19 (prev. 4.83 Y/Y). (Newswires)

Vivendi (VIV FP) - H1 2025 (EUR): Revenue 145mln, +8% Y/Y, EBITA 18mln. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Cellnex (CLNX SM) - H1 (EUR): Op. Income 2.14bln (prev. 2.11bln Y/Y), Op. Profit 244mln (prev. 136mln Y/Y). Reiterates its 2025 guidance. (Newswires)

EDP (EDPR PL) - 384MW secured in US of solar and storage. (Newswires)

Enel (ENEL IM) - H1 (EUR): Revenue 40.81bln, Net Income 3.42bln. Co. launches share buyback programme of up to EUR 1bln to pay additional remuneration to shareholders; programme to from August 1st to Dec 31st, 2025. CEO said in the final stages of exploration of acquisition of Brownfield assets in Europe and the US; disposal plan has been completed. (Newswires)

Erste (EBS AV) - H1 (EUR): NII 3.78bln. Raised 2025 outlook: NII is now projected to increase somewhat in 2025 (prev. guided flat). (Newswires)

Fugro (FUR NA) - H1 (EUR): Revenue 904.7mln. Outlook 2025: Sees strong recovery in H2. Confirms 2027 outlook. (Newswires)

Iberdrola (IBE SM) - Agreement for the divestment of Iberdrola Mexico unit to Cox Group, for EV of approx. USD 4.2bln. (Newswires)

Trade - White House says President Trump further modifies the reciprocal tariff rates with an executive order modifying reciprocal tariff rates for certain countries with tariff on Canada increased from 25% to 35% effective August 1st. (Newswires)

Pharma - US President Trump posts letter to 17 pharma companies; Tells pharma execs to extend most favoured nation pricing to Medicaid. LETTER WAS SENT TO: Eli Lilly (LLY), GSK (GSK LN), Sanofi (SAN FP), Merck (MRK), Regeneron (REGN), Genentech (ROG SW), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), AstraZeneca (AZN LN), Pfizer (PFE), Bristol Myers (BMY), Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis (NOVN SW), Gilead (GILD), EMD Serono (MRK GY), AbbVie (ABBV), Amgen (AMGN), and Novo Nordisk (NOVOB DC). Trump asks nations to 1) Extend Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) pricing to Medicaid, 2) Guarantee MFN pricing for newly-launched drugs, 3) Return increased revenues abroad to American patients and taxpayers, and 4) Provide for Direct Purchasing at MFN Pricing; wants commitments by September 29th, 2025.

Pirelli (PIRC IM) - H1 2025 (EUR): Net Income 264mln, +14.1% Y/Y, Revenue 3.50bln, +1.5% Y/Y; sees 2025 revenue at around 6.7-6.8bln. (Newswires)

UMG (UMG NA) - H1 2025 (EUR): Revenue 5.88bln (exp. 5.87bln), adj. EBITDA 1.336bln. Declares dividend of EUR 0.24/shr. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Enel (ENEL IM) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley

Saipem (SPM IM) downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC

SMI

Novartis (NOVN SW) - Novartis’ twice-yearly Leqvio (inclisiran) receives FDA approval for a new indication enabling first-line use. FDA requested a label update for Leqvio based on LDL-C data. Updated label removes the requirement for statin therapy with Leqvio. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Nestle (NESN SW) upgraded to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies

SCANDINAVIA

Ericsson (ERICB SS) Co. is in talks to invest in Intel's (INTC) standalone network business. (Newswires)

Novo Nordisk (NOVOB DC) - FDA approves Alhemo® as a once-daily prophylactic treatment to prevent or reduce the frequency of bleeding episodes for adults and children aged 12 and older with haemophilia A or B (without inhibitors).

BROKER MOVES

H&M (HMB SS) initiated with Sell at Berenberg

US

Apple (AAPL) - Apple reported Q3 revenues above expectations, driven by strong iPhone 16 demand and a rebound in China. It guided Q4 revenue rising mid- to high-single digits, topping expectations (exp. 3%), and its shares finished extended US trading with gains of 2.2%. Q3 EPS 1.57 (exp. 1.43), Q3 revenue USD 94.04bln (exp. 89.29bln); by segment, iPhone sales USD 44.58bln (exp. 44.52bln), Services sales USD 27.42bln (exp. 26.80bln), Mac sales USD 8.05bln (exp. 7.26bln), iPad sales USD 6.58bln (exp. 7.24bln), Wearables, Home & Accessories net sales USD 7.40bln (exp. 7.82bln). By Region, Americas sales USD 41.20bln (vs. 37.68bln Y/Y), Greater China revenue USD 15.37bln (exp. 15.12bln). CEO Tim Cook said purchases pulled forward ahead of tariffs added 1ppt to nearly 10% Q3 sales growth, with evidence of early buying. The June quarter was a record for upgrades, driven by iPhone 16 popularity. Apple incurred USD 800mln in tariff costs in Q3, expects USD 1.1bln in Q4, and remains open to AI-focused M&A. Apple sees Q4 revenue growth in the mid to high single digits (exp. +3%, or USD 97.85bln); sees Q4 services revenue growth "similar" to Q3 levels, sees Q4 gross margin between 46-47%, and sees Q4 OpEx between USD 15.6-15.8bln.

Amazon (AMZN) - Shares fell 6.5% in extended trading after guiding Q3 operating income below expectations; slower AWS growth and lack of visible returns from AI investment weighed on sentiment. It reported Q2 EPS of 1.68 (exp. 1.33), Q2 revenue of USD 167.7bln (exp. 161.91bln), with AWS net sales of USD 30.9bln (exp. 30.77bln). By region, North America sales +11% Y/Y to USD 100.1bln, international sales +16% Y/Y to USD 36.8bln (+11% ex-FX). CEO said through H1, it has not seen diminishing demand yet, nor has it seen prices appreciating meaningfully. Added that the company is relocating a number of people to focus on AI features. On AWS, Amazon said demand exceeds current capacity, citing power as the main constraint, alongside intermittent chip and server component shortages; expects these issues to persist for several quarters. On Alexa Plus, said it is significantly more intelligent and capable than previous versions, and unlike most chatbots, it can perform real-world tasks. Elsewhere, said the company will maintain a deep partnership with Nvidia (NVDA), but highlighted growing reliance on its own AI chips. Sees Q3 net sales between USD 174-179.5bln (exp. 173.42bln), and Q3 operating income between USD 15.5-20.5bln (exp. 19.42bln).

CSX Corporation (CSX) - CSX is working with Goldman Sachs (GS) to evaluate strategic options following the rival rail merger between UNP and NSC, according to Bloomberg. The discussions include potential merger scenarios, though no deal is guaranteed.

Goldman Sachs (GS) - Goldman Sachs is poised to invest in ice cream maker Froneri at a EUR 15bln valuation including debt, according to the FT. The deal, possibly closing by September, would see Goldman’s asset management lead a continuation vehicle alongside French private equity firm PAI Partners.

TSMC (TSM) - TSMC’s ADRs traded at a 24% premium to its Taipei shares in July, the widest gap in over 16 years, up from 17% in April, Bloomberg notes. The surge raises concerns that AI-driven market enthusiasm for the chipmaker may be overheating.

01 Aug 2025 - 06:59- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk