Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 20th December 2023

20th December 2023

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mostly positively following the tailwinds from Wall Street, although newsflow overnight was on the quieter side amid the pre-Christmas lull. ASX 200 saw its upside supported by the Energy and Metals sectors, whilst Tech lagged with shallower gains. Nikkei 225 surged as the index reacted to BoJ Governor Ueda's dovish press conference following the unchanged announcement yesterday. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp traded mixed with the former's gains spearheaded by large caps with US listings, including Alibaba, JD.com, and Baidu. Mainland China was subdued after PBoC maintained its Loan Prime Rates as expected and despite more liquidity injections by the central bank.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX +0.56% at 16,744.41, FTSE 100 +0.31% at 7,638.03, CAC 40 +0.08% at 7,574.67, Euro Stoxx 50 +0.32% at 4,535.55, IBEX 35 +0.52% at 10,106.70, FTSE MIB +0.41% at 30,363.53, SMI -0.08% at 11,146.43.

SECTORS: Materials 1.10%, Industrials 0.75%, Consumer Disc 0.53%, Financials 0.50%, Utilities 0.50%, Healthcare 0.30%, IT 0.22%, Energy 0.06%, Consumer Stpl -0.03%, Telecoms -0.12%

FTSE 100

Shell (SHEL LN), Equinor (EQNR NO) - Shell subsidiary greenlights the Sparta deep-water project in the US Gulf of Mexico, co-owned with Equinor. Projected peak production at 90k BOE/day, with estimated recoverable resources of 244mln BOE, and slated to start production in 2028. (Newswires)

Hikma (HIK LN) - Receives US FDA NDA supplemental 28 approval for Methadone Hydrochloride. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DS Smiths (SMDS LN) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS

Intertek (ITRK LN) upgraded to Outperform from Underperform at BNP Paribas

DAX

Deutsche Bank (DBK GY) - Doubles local capital in Indonesia to IDR 10tln. (Newswires)

Fresenius SE (FRE GY) - Receives US FDA warning letter related to inspection at medical device operations located in Massachusetts. (Newswires)

Volkswagen (VOW3 GY) - To use North American standards for future electric cars and study adapter solutions for existing vehicles. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Aurubis (NDA GY) - FY23 (EUR): EBT 349mln (prelim. 349mln). (Newswires)

Deutsche Post (DPW GY) - Teamsters union has reached a tentative agreement with DHL Express to end a 12 day-strike. (Newswires)

Prosiebensat (PSM GY) - Increases investments in local content and at the same time expects stable earnings next year; impairment on programming assets in 2023. Expects adj. EBITDA at the lower end of range of EUR 600mln plus/minus EUR 50mln (prev. EUR 678mln Y/Y). (Newswires) Shares seen -2% in pre-market trade

Suedzucker (SZU GY) - Appoints Stephen Meeder as CFO; effective May 31st 2024. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

LMVH (MC FP) – Antoine Arnault, Co’s environment head, said that they could begin to fire suppliers which do not comply with their own environmental standards. (FT)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Eurazeo (RF FP) - Co. and its partners have sold their stakes in Humens to Leto Partners; no terms disclosed. (Newswires)

Orpea (ORP FP) - Expects the Caisse des Depots-led group to own a 50.2% stake following the capital increase. (Newswires)

Verallia (VRLA FP) - Cuts FY23 Revenue to below 20% growth Y/Y (prev. guidance >20%), cites Argentinian Peso devaluation. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

AB InBev (ABI BB) – Anadolu Efes is to acquire AB InBev’s stake in their Russian JV, there will be no upfront cash payment but future payments will occur dependent on the units performance. (FT)

Argenx (ARGX BB) - Reports topline results from ADDRESS study of Efgartigimod SC in Pemphigus. Did not meet primary or secondary endpoints. (Newswires)

ING (INGA NA) - Is to triple its financing for renewable energy to EUR 7.5bln euros by 2025, according to its CEO. Co. is to stop financing oil and gas exploration and production by 2040. (Newswires)

GM (GM), Toyota (7203 JT), Stellantis (STLAM IM/STLAP FP), Ford (F), Mercedes-Benz (MBG GY), Volkswagen (VOW3 GY) - Are among automakers opposing the US bid to force a recall of 52mln airbag inflators, according to documents cited by Reuters. (Reuters)

Santander (SAM SM) – Affirms strategic goals after adapting past financial disclosures to reflect new primary segments. (Newswires)

Telefonica (TEF SM) – Spain is to purchase up to a 10% stake in Telefonica, following Saudi’s STC Group acquiring 9.9%. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Banco BPM (BAMI IM) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS

Verbund (VER AV) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays

Verbund (VER AV) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel Nicolaus

SMI

UBS (UBSG SW) - Plans an exit from loans Credit Suisse issued to an Italian firm. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Kuehne + Nagel (KNIN SW) initiated with Hold at TD Cowen

VAT Group (VACN SW) upgraded to Add from Reduce at Baader Helvea

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

Hexpol (HPOLB SS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at DNB Markets

Kojamo (KOJAMO FH) upgraded to Accumulate from Reduce at OP Corporate Bank

US

FedEx Corp (FDX) - Q2 2024 (USD): Adj. EPS 3.99 (exp. 4.20), Revenue 22.2bln (exp. 22.41bln); expects to buyback added 1bln of stock during FY24. Still forecasts FY24 adj. EPS 17.00-18.50 (exp. 18.22). Sees 2024 low-single-digit percentage decline in revenue Y/Y (prev. flat, exp. -9%). FY24 CapEx view 5.7bln (exp. 5.6bln). (Newswires) Shares seen -9.8% after-hours

Google (GOOG) - Reportedly plans ad sales restructuring as automation booms, according to The Information. (The Information)

Rivian (RIVN) - Is taking another big step toward opening its second manufacturing facility as it has chosen Clayco as its partner to build the massive USD 5bln EV plant, according to Electrek. (Electrek)

20 Dec 2023 - 06:47- MetalsResearch Sheet- Source: Newsquawk