Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 20th November 2024

ASIA

APAC stocks traded mixed following the price swings seen across global markets on Tuesday in which the US indices staged a recovery from the initial risk-off conditions triggered by the Ukraine-Russia escalation, while participants now await Nvidia's earnings. ASX 200 pulled back from recent record highs but with losses contained by a quiet calendar and light macro newsflow. Nikkei 225 traded indecisively despite the mostly better-than-expected Japanese trade data, while there were firm gains seen in Seven & I Holdings and media powerhouse Kadokawa following respective M&A-related headlines. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp swung between gains and losses with price action indecisive following the lack of fresh major catalysts in the region, while there were also no surprises from the PBoC's announcement of the benchmark Loan Prime Rates which were maintained at their current levels following last month's 25bp cuts.

China Vanke (2202 HK) - S&P downgrades China Vanke to B+; Outlook Negative citing shrinking balance sheet and weakening liquidity

Chinese LPR - Chinese Loan Prime Rate 5Y (Nov) 3.60% vs. Exp. 3.60% (Prev. 3.60%); Loan Prime Rate 1Y (Nov) 3.10% vs. Exp. 3.10% (Prev. 3.10%)

Seven & I (3382 JT) - Says media report that the founding family aims to complete management buyout this financial year is not something they announced. (Newswires)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX: -0.67% at 19,061, FTSE 100: -0.13% at 8,099, CAC 40: -0.67% at 7,230, Euro Stoxx 50: -0.83% at 4,751, AEX: -0.39% at 862, IBEX 35: -0.74% at 11,588, FTSE MIB: -1.28% at 33,325, SMI: -0.77% at 11,542, PSI: -0.84% at 6,360

SECTORS: Healthcare 0.59%, Telecoms 0.17%, Materials 0.01%, Utilities 0.01%, Consumer Stpl -0.37%, IT -0.47%, Industrials -0.61%, Energy -0.77%, Financials -0.89%, Consumer Disc -1.04%                         

FTSE 100

BP (BP/ LN) - Restarting units at 435k BPD Whiting, Indiana refinery. Delays coming out of turnaround at the Whiting refinery. (Newswires)

Rio Tinto (RIO LN) - Findings of workplace culture review found people continue to experience harmful behaviours at the co's workplace. (Newswires)

Shell (SHEL LN) - Accepted offer from Ukrnafta, to buy entirety of co's stake in Alliance Holdings. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SSP (SSP LN) downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan

DAX

Volkswagen (VOW3 GY) - Volkswagen Works Council memo shows Volkswagen labour costs accounted for 15.4% of revenues in 2023 vs 9.5-11% for BMW (BMW GY), Mercedes Benz (MBG GY) and Stellantis (STLAM IM/STLAP FP). Labour costs at VW's German plants estimated at 15.8-17.5% of revenue in 2023. Elsewhere, North American CEO Pablo Di Si stepped down at his own request last week, via FT; Kjell Gruner to take over from December 12th. (Newswires / FT) The next round of talks to be held on Thursday 21st Nov

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

Symrise (SY1 GY) - Announced a public offer to shareholders of Probi (PROB SS) to tender all shares for SEK 350 in cash per share. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Airbus (AIR FP) - CEO tells Reuters that CFM engine supplies should be enough to support end-year target but will be very close; will have more definitive info on engines supplies at end-Nov but believes it should be ok. (Newswires)

STMicroelectronics (STM FP) - Outlines 2027-2028 financial model and path towards 2030 ambition, targets USD 18bln revenues and 22%-24% operating margin in 2027-2028, reiterates USD 20bln+ revenue ambition by 2030. Says: Expects high triple-digit million-dollar savings by 2027. CEO says ram EV truck, e-rev delayed to H1 25 from 2024. (Newswires)

Vinci (DG FP) - Oct autoroute traffic +0.8% Y/Y. Passenger traffic +6.2% Y/Y. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Edenred (EDEN FP) - Increase of share buyback mandate by EUR 39mln; remains available until 15 May 2025. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

argenx (ARGX BB) - argenx Advances Clinical Development of Efgartigimod SC in Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies. Phase 2 data establish proof-of-concept of efgartigimod SC in myositis. (argenx)

Grifols (GRF SM) - Co. rejects Brookfield's potential offer of EUR 10.50/shr from Brookfield and recommends shareholders not to accept the price, as it is considered too low. (Newswires) Grifols last closed at EUR 10.34/shr

Inditex (ITX SM) - Co. boosts air shipments from factories in India and Bangladesh to avoid delays, according to Reuters citing data. (Reuters)

Stellantis (STLA IM/STLAP FP) - Launches third all-new, multi-energy platform: STLA Frame offers best-in-class 690-mile electrified range or 500-mile BEV range, towing and payload. (Newswires)

UCB (UCB BB) - UCB receives U.S. FDA approval for BIMZELX (bimekizumab-bkzx) as the first IL-17A and IL-17F inhibitor for adults with moderate to severe hidradenitis suppurativa. Approval is supported by data from the two Phase 3 studies, BE HEARD I and BE HEARD II, in which bimekizumab-bkzx improved the signs and symptoms of disease vs. placebo at Week 16, which were sustained to Week 48. (UCB)

BROKER MOVES

SMI

Baloise (BALN SW) - Refocusing strategy: High level of remittance of over CHF 550mln is expected. Dividend policy remains in place.

SGS (SGSN SW) - By 2027, expects incremental sales of at least CHF 600mln from sustainability and of at least CHF 200mln from digital trust. Fully confirms 2024 outlook and 2024-27 objectives. (Newswires)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX +0.40% at 5,917, NDX +0.71% at 20,685, DJIA -0.28% at 43,269, RUT +0.80% at 2,325

SECTORS: Energy -0.67%, Financials -0.64%, Health -0.48%, Materials -0.28%, Industrials -0.06%, Consumer Staples +0.34%, Consumer Discretionary +0.42%, Real Estate +0.45%, Utilities +0.66%, Communication Services +1.03%, Technology +1.22%.

Crypto - US President-elect Trump is said to consider crypto lawyer Teresa Goody Guillen to lead the SEC, according to CoinDesk cited by Reuters. (Reuters)

Comcast (CMCSA) - Reportedly greenlights USD 7bln spinoff of NBCUniversal cable channels, according to WSJ. (WSJ)

Merck (MRK) - Is the latest industry giant to be linked to a takeover bid for Incyte (INCY), with which it collaborates on several drug development projects, via Sky News. (Sky News)

Qualcomm (QCOM) - At its 2024 Investor Day, Qualcomm gave fresh 5yr financial targets for its QCT business; it outlined a USD 900bln total addressable market by 2030. New 5yr QCT targets include Automotive and IoT revenues of USD 22bln by FY29, with Automotive at USD 8bln, IoT at USD 14bln, and growth across PCs, industrial, XR, and other segments. Qualcomm said that the new revenue streams will offset declining Apple (AAPL) sales, and the projected growth surpasses current Apple chipset revenues. CNBC said the shift aims to reduce reliance on smartphones, leveraging its existing technology for expanded market opportunities, including edge AI and virtual reality. (Newswires)

20 Nov 2024 - 06:43- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk