Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 27th April 2021

The Daily European Equity Opening News is uploaded at 0700BST/0200EDT recapping all of the overnight equity news.

From 0700BST/0200EDT all equity news will be covered in real-time over the audio and headline feed and the full audio rundown will be at 0715BST/0215EDT.

There will be an additional audio rundown at 0750BST/0250EDT recapping any company news which has hit the wires since 0715BST/0215EDT ahead of the European equity open

European equity coverage will only cover companies in the STOXX 600 or companies of systemic importance to particular sectors.

ASIA

Asia-Pac stocks failed to take impetus from the mostly positive close and fresh record levels stateside, whereby the regional bourses remained cautious heading into the looming risk events and amid ongoing COVID-19 concerns. ASX 200 (-0.2%) was pressured with the index dragged lower by underperformance in tech and industrials but with losses stemmed as the mining-related sectors were kept afloat by the recent surge in copper and iron ore prices, while M&A newsflow provided some support with Bingo Industries underpinned after it entered into scheme implementation deed regarding the AUD 2.3bln buyout offer from MIRA and Tabcorp was also lifted after it received a proposal valued at AUD 3.5bln from Entain. Nikkei 225 (-0.2%) was subdued amid the ongoing state of emergency for key areas and unsurprising BoJ policy announcement although the downside was cushioned by a softer currency. Hang Seng (-0.1%) and Shanghai Comp. (-0.6%) conformed to the uninspired mood despite a surge in Industrial Profits for March which was likely due to base effects and with sentiment also dampened by crackdown concerns for the tech sector after China’s market regulator launched an anti-monopoly investigation into Meituan. However, HSBC shares were a notable mover with gains of around 2% following strong Q1 earnings.

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: EURO STOXX 50 +0.18% AT 4,021; FTSE 100 +0.42% AT 6,968; DAX +0.18% AT 15,307; CAC 40 +0.28% AT 6,276; IBEX 35 +0.93% AT 8,699; FTSE MIB +0.52% AT 24,514; SMI -0.34% AT 11,162

SECTORS: Financials +1.23%, Energy +0.97%, Materials +0.97%, Industrials +0.30%, Telecoms +0.27%, IT +0.18%, Consumer Disc +0.07%, Healthcare -0.37%, Utilities -0.43%, Consumer Stpl -0.74%

FTSE 100

HSBC (HSBA LN) - Q1 adj. revenue USD 13.27bln vs exp. USD 12.68bln. Adj. pre-tax profit USD 6.39bln vs exp. USD 4.30bln. CET1 ratio 15.9% vs exp. 15.8%. NIM 1.21%, -33bps Y/Y. Expected Credit Losses were a net release of USD 400mln, compared with a USD 3.0bln charge in 1Q20. Co. says the economic outlook has improved, resulting in increasing confidence in our revenue growth plans. Co. will consider whether to announce an interim dividend at HY results in August. Co. is cautiously optimistic on the remainder of 2021; "we maintain conservative positions on capital, funding, liquidity and credit". (Newswires/HSBC) Shares rose 2.7% in Hong Kong trade

OTHER UK COMPANIES

Entain (ENT LN) – Submitted a revised bid of AUD 3.5bln for Tabcorp Holdings, bid is regarded as being unsolicited and non-binding by Tabcorp who notes they are yet to form a view on the revised proposal. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

BUNZL (BNZL LN) DOWNGRADED TO UNDERWEIGHT FROM EQUAL WEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY

DAX

Volkswagen (VOW3 GY) - Mexican unit has announce a planned stoppage of Jetta and Tiguan production next month amid chip shortages. Separately, reports indicate the Chairman is expected to be awarded a second term. (Newswires)

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

CAC

Credit Agricole (ACA FP) – O’Neill has been appointed as CEO of the Hong Kong branch and as head of structured finance within Asia. (Newswires)

Michelin (ML FP) – Q1 revenue EUR 5.45bln vs prev. EUR 5.33bln; car market +9%, light truck +20%, with demand rebounding sharply in China across all markets, near 2019 levels. Confirms FY21 guidance. Notes the outlook remains highly uncertain. (Newswires)

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

PAN EUROPE

Chip Names - NXP Semiconductors NV (NXPI) reported Q1 21 (USD): EPS 1.25 (exp. 2.21), Revenue 2.57bln (exp. 2.56bln). Co. sees Q2 rev. USD 2.50bln-2.64bln (exp. 2.56bln). (Newswires) Shares rose 1% after-market

MediaSet (MS IM) – FY20 revenue EUR 2.64bln vs exp. EUR 2.5bln, EBIT EUR 269mln vs exp. EUR 260mln, net income EUR 139mln vs exp. EUR 128mln. Q2 should benefit significantly more from an increase in advertising revenue across the first 6-months of the year. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

SMI

ABB (ABBN SW) – Q1 revenue USD 6.9bln vs exp. USD 6.7bln, EPS USD 0.25 vs exp. USD 0.29, orders USD 7.76bln vs exp. USD 7.4bln. Affirms FY21 revenue growth at 5%, sees Q2 revenue above 10% YY. Co. says they experienced a strong start to the year. (Newswires)

Novartis (NOVN SW) - Q1 net sales USD 12.41bln vs exp. USD 12.58bln. Core EPS USD 1.52 vs exp. USD 1.56. Co. confirms 2021 group guidance. Co. notes that US volumes have been lower related to access, offset by rebate upside. Sandoz net sales -9% Y/Y with negative price effect mainly due to increasing competition. Net Y/Y sales growth of top 3 drugs: Cosentyx +13%, Entresto +39%, Gilenya -8%. (Newswires)

Roche (ROG SW) – Genentech has received US FDA orphan drug designation for Cobimetinib in use for histiocytic neoplasms. (Newswires)

UBS (UBSG SW) - Q1 net income USD 1.82bln vs exp. USD 1.63bln. Co. took a USD 744mln hit in relation to the Archegos default, exited all Archegos exposure in April. Diluted EPS USD 0.49 vs prev. USD 0.43 Y/Y. ROTE 14% vs prev. 12.8%. CET1 ratio 14% vs prev. 12.8%. Liquidity coverage ration 151% vs prev. 139%. Co. expects Q2 revenue to be influenced by seasonal factors, such as lower client activity vs Q1. In terms of macro commentary, UBS notes that investor sentiment remained positive in the Q1-2021, helped by the strong rebound in economic activity and greater optimism regarding the further recovery, supported by mass COVID-19 vaccination campaigns around the globe. However, economic, social, and geopolitical tensions remain, raising questions around the sustainability and shape of the recovery. (Newswires/UBS)

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

Maersk (MAERSKB DC) - Q1 prelim. revenue USD 12.4bln, EBITDA USD 4bln, EBIT USD 3.1bln. Co. significantly raises its FY21 adj. EBITDA guidance to between USD 13-15bkn vs prev. view USD 8.5-10.5bln. FCF guidance has also been upgraded to USD 7bln vs prev. view USD 3.5bln. Co. notes that the continued strong performance is mainly driven by the continuation of exceptional market situation with surging demand leading to bottlenecks in the supply chain. (Newswires)

Norsk Hydro (NHY NO) – Q1 revenue NOK 31.9bln vs exp. NOK 35.8bln, underlying EBITDA NOK 5.1bln vs exp. NOK 4.94bln, EBIT NOK 3.5bln vs exp. NOK 2.96bln. Revised 2025 improvement target of NOK 7.4bln given the sale of their rolling business; expected to close in Q2/Q3. Note there is decreasing oversupply within the aluminium market and analysts now expect a balance market for 2021; experienced higher realised alumina and aluminium prices. (Newswires)

SSAB (SSAB SS) – Solidium is to offer 65mln of the Co’s shares, representing ~6.3% of the outstanding shares. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

US

Amazon (AMZN) - FBN's Gasparino tweeted that traders say an Amazon stock split is likely in 2021, possibly as early as Thursday when it reports earnings, as a move would allow AMZN to join the DJIA. (FBN)

Tesla Inc (TSLA) - Q1 2021 (USD): Adj. EPS 0.93 (exp. 0.79), Revenue 10.39bln (exp. 10.29bln). FCF of 293mln. Debt and finance lease reduction of 1.2bln. Net cash outflow of 1.2bln related to Bitcoin. In total, 2.2bln decrease in cash and cash equivalents to 17.1bln. Click here for the full earnings summary. (Newswires) Shares fell 2.5% after hours

CLOSES: SPX +0.22% AT 4,189, NDX +0.61% AT 14,026, DJIA -0.18% AT 33,981, R2K +0.95% AT 2,293

SECTORS: ENERGY +0.63%, CONSUMER DISCRETIONARY +0.62%, TECHNOLOGY +0.56%, MATERIALS +0.5%, FINANCIALS +0.33%, COMMUNICATION SVS. +0.26%, REAL ESTATE +0.2%, INDUSTRIALS -0.29%, HEALTH -0.35%, UTILITIES -0.55%, CONSUMER STAPLES -1.16%

27 Apr 2021 - 06:51- MetalsGeopolitical- Source: Newsquawk