Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 21st March 2024

21st March 2024

ASIA

APAC stocks were mostly underpinned after the fresh record levels on Wall St post-dovish FOMC where the Fed maintained the projection for 3 rate cuts in 2024 and Powell downplayed recent hot inflation data. ASX 200 strengthened with sentiment also helped by a stellar jobs report and a fall in unemployment, while gold miners outperformed after the precious metal rose above USD 2,200/oz to a new all-time high. Nikkei 225 rallied from the open to unprecedented levels north of 40,800 despite recent hawkish source reports. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp. were mixed in which the Hong Kong benchmark rallied to just shy of the 17,000 level amid strength in the property sector and as the Fed projection for three rate cuts keeps similar action on the table for the HKMA. Conversely, the mainland lagged as the PBoC injected the least amount of funds in its open market operations since August last year despite the PBoC's Deputy Governor reaffirming that China's monetary policy has ample room and there is still room for cutting RRR.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX: +0.14% at 18,012.93, IBEX 35: +0.48% at 10,752.50, CAC 40: -0.48% at 8,161.41, PSI: +0.48% at 6,152.21, FTSE 100: -0.01% at 7,737.38, Euro Stoxx 50: -0.19% at 4,998.65, FTSE MIB: +0.09% at 34,293.29, SMI: +0.35.

SECTORS: Utilities 0.99%, Materials 0.65%, Industrials 0.46%, IT 0.20%, Telecoms 0.20%, Healthcare 0.02%, Financials -0.20%, Consumer Stpl -0.41%, Consumer Disc -0.74%, Energy -0.80%

FTSE 100

Barclays (BARC LN) – Co. is said to be mulling several hundred job cuts at its investment bank arm in a bid to cut costs within the unit, according to Bloomberg sources. The cuts are expected to take place in the coming months. (Newswires)

Ex-Dividends - British American Tobacco (BATS LN), Hikma (HIK LN), Schroders (SDR LN), Pearson (PSON LN), Beazley (BEZ LN) will trade without entitlement to their latest dividend payout. (Newswires)

GSK (GSK LN) - Announces cap of USD 35/m on US patient out-of-pocket costs for its Asthma and COPD inhalers; to be implemented no later than Jan 1, 2025. (Newswires)

Glencore (GLEN LN) - Mount ISA mines will source 20% of its long-term electricity needs from a new solar farm in Mount ISA. (Newswires)

Shell (SHEL LN) - Sells its 50% equity share in Southcoast Wind to existing JV partner, Ocean Winds. The deal was structured to simultaneously sign and close with an immediate effective date. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

DAX

Porsche SE (PAH3 GY) - Proposes a dividend of 2.56/preference share and EUR 2.554/ordinary share. Group earnings after tax EUR 5.1bln (vs exp. 5.249bln). Announces new JV with DTCP. FY24 Outlook: Result after tax EUR 2.8-5.8bln. Aim to reduce net debt to between 5-5.5bln. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

1&1 (1U1) – FY23 (EUR): Revenue 4.097bln (exp. 4.072bln), EBIT 455.8mln (exp. 455ml), Dividend EUR 0.05 (exp 0.05). Outlook: EBITDA is expected to increase by 10%. (Newswires)

Delivery Hero (DHER GY) - Repurchases EUR 409.2mln convertible bonds due in 2025-26; will cancel repurchased convertible bonds due 2025 and 2026. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Airbus (AIR FP) - Japan Airlines to buy 42 additional Airbus and Boeing (BA) aircraft, via Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

Hermes (RMS FP) - Co. has been sued over claims it unlawfully allowed customers with a "sufficient purchase history" to buy its Birkin bag, via Sky News. (Sky News)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Getlink (GET FP) - Co. launching a tender for the takeover of the light vehicle refuelling station in Coqeulles; plans to close the submission of offers in June 2024. (Newswires)

Peugeot (PEUG FP) - Dividend proposal to the general meeting of EUR 3.25/shr. Net debt amounted to EUR 858mln, EUR -27mln Y/Y. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

bioMerieux (BIM FP) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Berenberg

PAN EUROPE

Chip Names - Micron Technology Inc (MU) - Q4 2023 (USD): Adj. EPS 0.42 (exp. -0.25), Revenue 5.824bln (exp. 5.34bln). Q3 Adj. EPS view 0.45 (exp. 0.17), revenue view 6.6bln (exp. 5.976bln)Q3 24 gross margin view 25-28% (exp. 20.15%) (more details below). MU shares +18.2% after-hours

Defence Names - The Dutch Defence Minister announced a EUR 350mln defence aid package with F-16 ammunition and drones to Ukraine, and will be delivered H1'24. Elsewhere, French President Macron will today urge EU leaders to back plans to boost defence spending. (FT/ Newswires)

Nuclear Energy Names – An FT article notes concerns are growing over electricity supply as the number of data centres (namely for AI and crypto) increase rapidly, with potential opportunity seen in the nuclear energy sector. (FT)

Raiffeisen Bank (RBI AT) – Co. shares fell 8.7% on Wednesday as it abandoned a planned sale of EUR 650mln AT1 bonds hours before the bonds were due to be priced. The Co. cited an “adverse market reaction” to a report the US was pressuring the Co. over a deal with Russian oligarch Deripaska. (FT)

Repsol (REP SM) - Co. will ask AGM to give its CEO the power to reduce share capital to 121.7mln (10% share capital). To propose distribution of the fixed amount of EUR 0.45/shr to free reserves. To propose a dividend of EUR 0.5/shr to take place on July 8. (Newswires)

Steel Names / Miners – An FT article notes that Chinese steel exports are at an eight-year high and are fuelling concerns of global oversupply across multiple industries. The article cites China’s domestic property crisis and lack of stimulus. (FT)

BROKER MOVES

DiaSorin (DIA IM) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Berenberg

SMI

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

Fingerprint Cards (FINGB SS) - Announces price (SEK 0.8202/shr) and number of new shares in connection with the third scheduled amortisation and interest payment under its outstanding convertible bond. The share capital will increase by about SEK 387.8k. (Newswires)

Novonensis (NSISB DC) – Provides outlook for 2024 with expected 5-7% organic sales growth and around 35% adj. EBITDA margin. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

US

CLOSES: SPX +0.89% at 5,225, NDX +1.15% at 18,240, DJI +1.03% at 39,512, RUT +1.92% at 2,075.

SECTORS: Consumer Discretionary +1.45%, Communication Services +1.26%, Financials +1.24%, Industrials +1.21%, Technology +1.15%, Materials +0.98%, Real Estate +0.39%, Consumer Staples +0.23%, Utilities +0.13%, Energy -0.09%, Health -0.23%.

Apple (AAPL) - US DoJ is to file an antitrust case against Apple (AAPL) in federal court as soon as Thursday, according to Bloomberg. (Bloomberg)

Fusion Pharmaceuticals (FUSN) - Q4 EPS -0.39 (exp. -0.34), revenue USD 0.00 (exp. 410k). Said existing cash, cash equivalents and investments of USD 247.3mln at end-Dec, and has sufficient capital to fund operations into 2025. Exec notes strong momentum in 2024. Has achieved several critical milestones recently: For its lead programme, FPI-2265, expects to initiate Phase 2 in Q2. Will present data from the TATCIST trial at AACR in April. (Newswires)

Micron Technology Inc (MU) - Q4 2023 (USD): Adj. EPS 0.42 (exp. -0.25), Revenue 5.824bln (exp. 5.34bln). Q3 Adj. EPS view 0.45 (exp. 0.17), revenue view 6.6bln (exp. 5.976bln)Q3 24 gross margin view 25-28% (exp. 20.15%). Commentary AI demand and tight supply accelerate the return to profitability. Preeminent product portfolio positions the co. well, to deliver a strong H2 24. Expect DRAM and NAND pricing levels to increase further throughout the calendar year 2024. Expect 2024 front-end cost reductions, excluding the impact of HBM, to track in line with long-term expectations. Expect record revenue and much-improved profitability now in FY 25. Is well positioned with our portfolio of HBM, D5, LP5, high-capacity DIMM, CXL and Data Center SSD products. Development of our next-generation NAND node is on track, with volume production planned for calendar 2025. Inventories for memory and storage have improved significantly in the data centre. Expects calendar 2024 bit demand growth for the industry to be near the long-term CAGR for DRAM. In data centers, total industry server unit shipments are expected to grow mid to high single digits in the calendar year 2024. Well on their HBM product ramp plans and have made significant progress in ramping our capacity, yields and quality. Have begun high-volume shipments of our HBM3E product. Expect calendar 2024 industry supply to be below demand for both DRAM and NAND. Plan fiscal Q3 capital expenditures to be higher than in the second quarter. Now expects to generate positive free cash flow in fiscal Q3 and Q4. Expect next-gen AI PC units to grow and become a meaningful portion of total PC units in calendar 2025. Forecast continued improvement in operating income through the remainder of the year. Expect solid sequential improvement in fiscal Q3 gross margins due to robust price increases across both DRAM and NAND. (Newswires) Shares +18.2% after-hours

Neuralink - Elon Musk's brain-chip company Neuralink has shown its first patient moving a cursor on a computer using an implanted device. (BBC)

Nvidia (NVDA) - Announced that Q1 2025 earnings would be published on May 22nd, 2024. Separately, the CEO told CNBC that Nvidia has created markets that did not exist before, rather than take share from existing markets. Added that the most important thing for a country is to create its own sovereign AI.

Barclays (BARC LN) – Co. is said to be mulling several hundred job cuts at its investment bank arm in a bid to cut costs within the unit, according to Bloomberg sources. The cuts are expected to take place in the coming months. (Newswires)

Neuralink - Elon Musk's brain-chip company Neuralink has shown its first patient moving a cursor on a computer using an implanted device. (BBC)Defense Names – French President Macron will today urge EU leaders to back plans to boost defence spending. (FT)

Steel Names / Miners – An FT article notes that Chinese steel exports are at an eight-year high and fuelling concerns of global oversupply across multiple industries. The article cites China’s domestic property crisis and lack of stimulus. (FT)

Nuclear Energy Names – An FT article notes concerns are growing over electricity supply as the number of data centres (namely for AI and crypto) increase rapidly, with potential opportunity in the nuclear energy sector. (FT)

Raiffeisen Bank (RBI AT) – Co. shares fell 8.7% on Wednesday as it abandoned a planned sale of EUR 650mln AT1 bonds hours before the bonds were due to be priced. The Co. cited an “adverse market reaction” to a report the US was pressuring the Co. over a deal with Russian oligarch Deripaska. (FT)

21 Mar 2024 - 06:51- Data- Source: Newsquawk