Newsquawk Daily European Equity Opening News - 6th September 2024

6th September 2024

ASIA

APAC stocks traded without a firm direction following a similar lead from Wall Street, with the tone tentative heading into the much-awaited US jobs report, which could be the determining factor between a 25bps or 50bps cut by the Fed after the central bank shifted its emphasis to the labour market. As a reminder, Fed Vice Chair Williams and Governor Waller will be speaking after the jobs numbers ahead of the Fed's blackout period set to begin this weekend for the September 18th announcement. ASX 200 just about held onto gains at one point, with Utilities, Financials, Real Estate and Gold names countering the underperformance in Energy and Tech. Nikkei 225 was subdued under the 37k mark (and briefly dipped under 36.5k) with mining and industrial names among the worst performers, whilst Nippon Steel shares fell around 3% amid the ongoing spat with the Biden admin after the US intervened in the Nippon Steel takeover of US Steel amid national security risks.

Chinese Stocks - US Commerce Department unveils latest exports curbs and targets China with new quantum, chip-related export curbs and latest global controls exempt countries with similar measures, according to Bloomberg. Rules align with those from Japan, Netherlands, and other allies.

Hong Kong Stocks - HKEX confirmed no trading today in securities and derivatives markets due to the issuance of Typhoon Signal No. 8. Stock Connect trading is also suspended for the day. No securities clearing and settlement services will be provided for the day.

Japanese Autos - Japan Industry Minister Saito says the government will provide subsidies of about JPY 350bln for 12 storage battery-related projects. Subsidies include support for plans from Panasonic (6752 JT), Nissan (7201 JT), and Toyota Group (7203 JT). (Newswires)

EUROPEAN CLOSES

CLOSES: DAX: +0.02% at 18,596, FTSE 100: -0.34% at 8,242, CAC 40: -0.92% at 7,432, Euro Stoxx 50: -0.68% at 4,815, AEX: -0.57% at 892, IBEX 35: +0.53% at 11,274, FTSE MIB: +0.01% at 33,685, SMI: -1.04% at 12,049, PSI: +0.02% at 6,741.

SECTORS: Utilities 1.65%, Telecoms 0.89%, Financials 0.49%, Energy -0.08%, Consumer Stpl -0.26%, Materials -0.89%, Industrials -0.90%, Consumer Disc -1.40%, IT -1.49%, Healthcare -1.56%

FTSE 100

Rolls-Royce (RR/ LN) - European regulator EASA issued directive ordering checks on some Rolls-Royce XWB-97 engines on Airbus (AIR FP) A350-1000 jets. (Newswires)

OTHER UK COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

Melrose (MRO LN) initiated with Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 500p.

DAX

OTHER GERMAN COMPANIES

ATOSS Software (AOF GY) - Private placement of of Atoss Software shares by AOB Invest and General Atlantic intended to strengthen the free float and liquidity of the stock has been successfully completed. Each party sold 541,667 shares at a placement of EUR 120/shr. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

CAC

OTHER FRENCH COMPANIES

Elis (ELI FP) - Co. has made an offer for US uniform supplier, Vestis (VSTS), via Reuters citing sources. (Reuters) Vestis (VSTS) shares rose 11% in the prior session; current market cap is USD 2.01bln

Rubis (RUI FP) - H1 (EUR): Revenue 3.33bln (prev. 3.32bln Y/Y), EBITDA 358mln (prev. 409mln Y/Y). FY24 guidance confirmed. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Rexel (RXL FP) initiated with Overweight at Barclays

PAN EUROPE

BBVA (BBVA SM) / Sabadell (SAB SM) - BBVA received the decision of non-opposition from the ECB to BBVA's taking control of Banco Sabadell, as a result of the offer. (Newswires)

Eni (ENI IM) - Co. and Socar sign three MOUs on energy security and reduction of CO2 emissions. (Newswires)

InPost (INPST NA) - Q2 (PLN): Revenue 2.62bln (Co. consensus 2.61bln), Adj. EBITDA 887.3mln (Co. consensus 827mln). Parcel Volume 264mln (Co. consensus 259mln). Outlook: E-commerce in Poland to high single-digit to low double-digit growth. (Newswires)

BROKER MOVES

Colonial (COL SM) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies

SMI

OTHER SWISS COMPANIES

BROKER MOVES

SCANDINAVIA

BROKER MOVES

US

Amazon (AMZN) - Nears major deal to broadcast NBA, MLB, and NHFL on Prime streaming, NY Post reported. (Newswires)

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) sold about 18.8mln Bank of America (BAC) common shares for approximately USD 760mln between Sept 3 and Sept 5, according to an SEC filing

Broadcom (AVGO) - Broadcom's shares fell 6.7% in extended trading after it reported a narrow beat on its quarterly numbers, though it missed on semiconductor sales, and traders were disappointed with its outlook. Q3 adj. EPS 1.24 (exp. 1.20), Q3 revenue USD 13.07bln (exp. 12.96bln), Q3 adj. EBITDA 8.22bln (exp. 7.89bln), Q3 FCF USD 4.8bln (exp. 6.32bln). Q3 semiconductor solutions revenue USD 7.27bln (exp. 7.41bln), Q3 infrastructure software revenue USD 5.80bln (exp. 5.5bln), Q3 adj. operating income USD 7.95bln (exp. 7.73bln), Q3 adj. R&D expense USD 1.47bln (exp 1.47bln), Q3 CapEx USD 172mln (exp 140.5mln). Sees Q4 revenue at around USD 14bln (exp. 14.13bln), Q4 EBITDA margin seen at 64% (exp. 63.2%). Exec said results reflect continued strength in its AI semiconductor solutions and VMware. Expects revenue from AI to be USD 12bln in FY24 (prev. saw over USD 11bln). Exec says Co. is raising FY24 revenue forecasts to USD 51.5bln (prev. USD 51bln; exp. 51.46bln). (Newswires)

Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF), US Steel (X), Nippon Steel (NPSCY) - The WSJ reports that Cleveland-Cliffs is open to acquiring US Steel assets if Nippon Steel's USD 14.1bln deal is blocked. CEO Lourenco Goncalves pledged to invest in union-represented assets that US Steel may shut down, supporting President Biden's reported opposition to the Nippon acquisition.

Intel (INTC), Mobileye Global (MBLY), Qualcomm (QCOM) - Intel is considering selling part of its 88% stake in Mobileye amid a broader strategy overhaul, possibly through the public market or a third-party sale, Bloomberg reports. The move is part of efforts to improve performance as Mobileye struggles with declining stock and revenue forecasts. Separately, Qualcomm is exploring acquiring parts of Intel’s design business, particularly its PC client division, as Intel struggles with declining revenue and cash flow, Reuters reports. Qualcomm's interest, which has not yet led to formal talks, aims to enhance its own product portfolio. (Newswires)

Salesforce (CRM) - Salesforce is acquiring data protection start-up Own for USD 1.9bln, marking its largest deal since Slack. Salesforce previously held a 10% stake in the company, which specialises in securing software application data. Own was valued at USD 3.35bln in 2021. The acquisition is expected to close in Q4, and will not affect Salesforce’s fiscal guidance or capital return programme. Potentially of note for Germany's SAP (SAP GY)

Nippon Steel (NPSCY), US Steel (X) - The US government raised national security concerns over Nippon Steel’s proposed USD 14.9bln takeover of US Steel, citing risks to domestic steel supply and reduced tariffs on foreign steel. The Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) highlighted concerns about US Steel's production capacity and the impact of cheap Chinese steel. It was earlier reported that Nippon Steel had proposed a national security agreement for its US Steel acquisition, including appointing a majority US board, with three members approved by the government. And former US lawmaker Dick Gephardt was hired to help negotiate with the United Steelworkers union.

Qualcomm (QCOM) has reportedly explored buying pieces of Intel’s (INTC) design business, Reuters sources said.

US Tech - Xockets claims NVIDIA (NVDA) and Microsoft (MSFT) colluded on patent licensing, Bloomberg reproted. (Bloomberg)

06 Sep 2024 - 06:44- Research Sheet- Source: Newsquawk