Μικτά πρόσημα στα ευρωπαϊκά χρηματιστήρια

Με μικτά πρόσημα ολοκληρώθηκε σήμερα η συνεδρίαση στα ευρωπαϊκά χρηματιστήρια, με τον κλάδο των καταναλωτικών αγαθών να σημειώνει τα μεγαλύτερα κέρδη και αυτόν του real estate τις μεγαλύτερες απώλειες.

Μικτή η εικόνα σήμερα στα ευρωπαϊκά χρηματιστήρια, με τους επενδυτές να στρέφονται στα εταιρικά αποτελέσματα εν απουσία μακροοικονομικών νέων.

Η Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση (ΕΕ) κάνει τη ζωή των επιχειρήσεων σε όλο τον κόσμο πολύ πιο δύσκολη. Το μπλοκ των 27 χωρών έχει υιοθετήσει επιθετικά νέους νόμους που αποσκοπούν στην αστυνόμευση των προσωπικών δεδομένων, του περιεχομένου των μέσων κοινωνικής δικτύωσης και της κυριαρχίας της Μεγάλης Τεχνολογίας. Έχει ασκήσει αγωγές για να εμποδίσει τις συγχωνεύσεις. Και έχει ετοιμάσει την πρώτη ολοκληρωμένη νομοθεσία στον κόσμο για την αστυνόμευση της τεχνητής νοημοσύνης.(περισσότερα εδώ)

Οι τιμές των γερμανικών οικιστικών ακινήτων σημείωσαν το 2023 τη μεγαλύτερη πτώση των τελευταίων 60 ετών, καθώς το υψηλότερο κόστος χρηματοδότησης και η φθίνουσα πολιτική στήριξη αποθάρρυναν τους υποψήφιους αγοραστές κατοικιών.

Ενώ οι τιμές των διαμερισμάτων και των μονοκατοικιών μειώθηκαν κατά 9% και 11% αντίστοιχα, οι τιμές των πολυκατοικιών κατέρρευσαν κατά 20% σε σύγκριση με το προηγούμενο έτος, σύμφωνα με τον γερμανικό δείκτη ακινήτων που δημοσιεύεται από το Ινστιτούτο του Κιέλου για την Παγκόσμια Οικονομία.(περισσότερα εδώ)

Η Credit Agricole SA σημείωσε πτώση στις συναλλαγές στο Παρίσι, καθώς η αύξηση του κόστους επισκίασε ένα τρίμηνο ρεκόρ στην εταιρική και επενδυτική τράπεζα.

Τα λειτουργικά έξοδα αυξήθηκαν κατά 15% το τέταρτο τρίμηνο, αντανακλώντας εν μέρει τον αντίκτυπο των εξαγορών και των μεταβλητών αποζημιώσεων, ανακοίνωσε η τράπεζα την Πέμπτη. Οι υψηλότερες από τις αναμενόμενες δαπάνες συνέβαλαν στη μείωση των καθαρών κερδών κατά 25%, ακόμη και όταν τα έσοδα της τράπεζας επιχειρήσεων και επενδύσεων ήταν τα υψηλότερα που έχουν σημειωθεί ποτέ για τέταρτο τρίμηνο.(περισσότερα εδώ)

Ο δείκτης Stoxx 600 έκλεισε στις 485,36 μονάδες με οριακές απώλειες 0,06%.

Στην Φρανκφούρτη ο δείκτης DAX έκλεισε στις 16.963,66 μονάδες με άνοδο 0,25%, με το σήμα να παραμένει σε strong buy, και με την στήριξη να βρίσκεται στις 16.790 μονάδες.

Μεγαλύτερη άνοδος

Μεγαλύτερη πτώση

Στο Λονδίνο ο δείκτης FTSE 100 έκλεισε στις 7.594,26 μονάδες με πτώση 0,45%, με το σήμα να μετατρέπεται από strong buy σε neutral, με την αντίσταση να βρίσκεται στις 7.733 μονάδες και την στήριξη στις 7.531 μονάδες.

Μεγαλύτερη άνοδος

Μεγαλύτερη πτώση

Στο Παρίσι ο δείκτης CAC 40 έκλεισε στις 7.665,63 μονάδες με άνοδο 0,71%, με το σήμα να παραμένει σε strong buy, και με την στήριξη να βρίσκεται στις 7.587 μονάδες.

Μεγαλύτερη άνοδος

Μεγαλύτερη πτώση

Εταιρικά νέα

A.P. Moeller-Maersk suspended its share buyback program as the Danish shipping giant moves to preserve cash, with uncertainty surrounding disruption in the Red Sea and as industry overcapacity continues to drag on freight rates.

AstraZeneca sees its revenue and core earnings per share growing by double-digit percentages in 2024, the pharmaceuticals major said as it reported fourth-quarter results with revenue roughly in line with views and core earnings per share slightly below.

The Anglo-Swedish group on Thursday reported core EPS–its preferred metric which strips out exceptional and other one-off items–of $1.45 for the three months ended Dec. 31, up from $1.38 for the comparable period a year earlier, but missing estimates of $1.50 taken from a company-compiled consensus. Total revenue for the quarter was $12.02 billion–a touch ahead of expectations of $12.01 billion–up from $11.21 billion, London’s largest company by market capitalization said. Product sales rose to $11.32 billion from $10.80 billion, it added. “We expect another year of strong growth in 2024, driven by continued adoption of our medicines across geographies,” Chief Executive Pascal Soriot said.

For the year ahead, both total revenue and core EPS are expected to increase by a low double-digit to low teens percentage at constant exchange rates, the company said. It sees collaborative revenue–which rose 74% in the fourth quarter–increasing substantially in 2024 on success-based milestones and some expected transactions, while other operating income is expected to see a substantial decline, it added.

British American Tobacco said it swung to a pretax loss, driven by a previously reported write-down of its U.S. cigarette brands, but backed forecasts for growth in 2024.

The FTSE 100 cigarette maker–which houses the Kent, Dunhill and Lucky Strike brands–said pretax loss for 2023 was 17.06 billion pounds ($21.54 billion) compared with a profit of GBP9.32 billion a year prior. It said the swing was largely driven by an impairment of GBP27.6 billion. Of the impairment, GBP27.3 billion relates to pressure on some of its traditional cigarette brands in the U.S., as it shifts focus to smokeless products, it said.

Adjusted profit from operations edged up to GBP12.465 billion from GBP12.41 billion in 2022. Despite the growth, it skirted under a company-provided consensus forecast of an adjusted operating profit of GBP12.595 billion. New categories revenue rose to GBP3.35 billion from GBP2.89 billion, missing a forecast of GBP3.46 billion, according to company-provided consensus.

Revenue was GBP27.28 billion compared with GBP27.66 billion, dragged by the sale of its businesses in Russia and Belarus, foreign-exchange pressures and lower cigarette volumes, and partially offset by the increased new categories revenue. Revenue was forecast at GBP27.60 billion, according to consensus provided by the company.

BAT said global tobacco industry volume is expected to decline around 3% in 2024, and it backed prior guidance for low single digit organic revenue and adjusted operating profit growth for the year. The board declared a dividend of 235.52 pence a share, up from 230.9 pence.

SSE said it noted a narrower range of probable financial outcomes for the fiscal year on lower-than-planned renewables output over the third quarter, and backed its adjusted earnings per share guidance. The U.K. energy group said Thursday that SSE Renewables output over the first three quarters was around 15% below plan, or 10% below plan relative to the full year. SSE said this was mostly due to a combination of mixed weather conditions, short-term plant outages and the rephasing of flexible hydro output into the fourth quarter.

The company said that SSE Thermal’s performance for the third quarter ended Dec. 31 continued to reflect lower spark spreads–the difference between the wholesale market price of electricity and the production cost using natural gas–and market volatility. Still, the business is expected to deliver fiscal 2024 guidance of over 750 million pounds ($947 million) in adjusted operating profit, and that this includes over GBP75 million from gas storage. The company said that for the year ending March 31 it expected adjusted earnings per share of over 150 pence. The company said it remained on track to deliver adjusted investment and capital expenditure of around GBP2.5 billion for fiscal 2024. “Our long-term strategy remains unchanged and will deliver sustainable value for shareholders and society,” the company said.

Anglo American’s fourth-quarter production fell as expected, mainly due to a planned slowdown at its main iron ore operation in South Africa, as the company backed its 2024 outlook. The diversified mining major said Thursday that it produced 6% less copper at 230,000 metric tons compared with the same period a year earlier, due to a 16% decrease in the output from operations in Chile.

The Quellaveco copper mine in Peru–one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper deposits–delivered its strongest quarter yet of 93,700 tons, while the Minas-Rio iron-ore mine in Brazil had its highest-ever quarterly volume of 6.6 million tons. However, the overall iron ore output was more than offset by the planned slowdown in the South African Kumba mine production. This was done to align output with the logistical issues to transport the minerals via rail to port, previously flagged by the London-based miner. “Our fourth quarter production was in line with our expectations and in line with the third quarter,” Chief Executive Duncan Wanblad said. For the full-year, overall production rose around 3% compared with 2022, as flagged by the company in its investor update in December. Anglo American still expects overall production to fall 4% in 2024, with unit costs decreasing 2%, and reiterated its production and costs targets for each metal and mineral, as set out in December.

Gucci owner Kering expects investments in its fashion houses and a normalization of sales growth across the luxury sector to weigh on its profitability this year. The French luxury giant on Thursday reported fourth-quarter sales of 4.97 billion euros ($5.35 billion), against expectations of EUR4.91 billion, according to consensus estimates provided by Visible Alpha. For 2023 as a whole, the group reported recurring operating income of 4.75 billion euros ($5.12 billion), down from EUR5.59 billion in 2022. For 2024, Kering expects a decline compared with last year’s figure, particularly in the first half, it said. Its Gucci brand, the group’s largest contributor to group revenue, posted EUR9.87 billion, down from EUR10.49 billion in 2022. “In a market environment that remains uncertain in early 2024, our continuing investments in our Houses will put pressure on our results in the short term,” the French luxury conglomerate said.

Compass Group said that it had a strong growth across all regions in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and backed its full-year guidance. The U.K. catering contractor said Thursday that the group organic revenue in the three months ended Dec. 31 rose 11.7%. Regionally North America organic revenue rose 11.3%, Europe was up 13%, with the rest of the world 11.8% higher. Compass like-for-like volume was better than anticipated, particularly in its business and industry sector, it said. For the year ahead the company reiterated that it expects underlying operating profit growth towards 13%, with high single-digit organic revenue growth and ongoing margin progression. “The group’s good cash generation and balance sheet gives us the flexibility to invest in capex, driving organic growth, and acquire high quality businesses, unlocking further growth and enhancing shareholder returns,” Chief Executive Dominic Blakemore said.

Adyen said net profit rose in the second half of 2023, driven its by accelerated investment strategy. The Dutch payments company said Thursday that for the six months ended Dec. 31 net profit was 416.1 million euros ($448.3 million) compared with EUR282.0 million for the same period a year earlier. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization for the period rose to EUR423.0 million from EUR372.0 million. Net revenue for the period rose 23% to EUR887.0 million, reflecting the strength of continued long-term partnerships, Adyen said. Regionally, net revenue contributions continued to diversify, with EMEA contributing 55%, followed by North America at 27%, it said. North America was the fastest growing region, up 27%. The company said it processed EUR544.1 billion in payments in the half year, up 29%.

ArcelorMittal booked a swing to fourth-quarter net loss due to the impact from the disposal of its Kazakh operations and a large impairment charge, but said it sees improving steel demand. The Luxembourg-based steelmaker on Thursday booked a fourth-quarter net loss of $2.97 billion, a swing from $261 million in net profit in the prior-year’s same quarter, and compared with a consensus forecast of a $1.645 billion net loss.

The drop was mainly due to an impairment charge of $1.4 billion from the company’s investment in Acciaierie d’Italia, as well as a $2.43 billion hit from the sale of the company’s Kazakhstan operations in December. The impairment related to Acciaierie d’Italia was flagged by the company earlier this week, when it also noted the charge wouldn’t be reflected in the consensus figure for net income. These also drove a widened operating loss of $1.98 billion, compared with an operating loss of $306 million a year prior.

Sales declined 12% in the quarter to $14.55 billion, due to lower average steel prices and shipment volumes. Looking ahead, ArcelorMittal sees improving steel demand conditions as the destocking trend that impacted the preceding quarter looks to abate. ArcelorMittal proposed an increased annual dividend of $0.50, up from $0.44.

Aker Solutions on Thursday raised its dividend and launched a share-buyback program, with the company expecting to see increased market activity and continued high demand.

The energy-industry service provider reported a net profit of 9.87 billion Norwegian kroner ($932.8 million) for the fourth quarter, as earnings were boosted by the recent closing of a subsea joint venture, which saw it receive $700 million and retain a 20% ownership in a larger subsea entity. Revenue rose 32% to NOK10.87 billion.

Analysts polled by FactSet had forecast net profit of NOK270 million on revenue of NOK9.46 billion.

The company expects 2024 revenue to be up around 15%, with the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization margin excluding the subsea joint venture to pick up significantly and reach around 6%-7%. Order intake in the quarter was NOK14.6 billion from NOK45.2 billion last year, as the backlog rose to NOK72.7 billion from NOK72.8 billion. A FactSet poll had seen order intake of NOK8.32 billion with a backlog of NOK91.61 billion. The tender pipeline at the end of the year was NOK74 billion. The company proposed a dividend of NOK2, up from NOK1 in 2022, and said it will buy back shares worth up to NOK500 million in 2024.

Siemens reported an increase in net profit, beating analysts’ expectations, after earnings rose across most of its businesses in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

The German industrial company said Thursday that it made 2.39 billion euros ($2.57 billion ) in net profit for the quarter ended in December compared with EUR1.48 billion a year prior on revenue that grew 1.9% to EUR18.41 billion. Orders for the period contracted 1.4% to EUR22.30 billion, bringing the company’s backlog to EUR113 billion. The result compares with analysts’ expectations of EUR1.69 billion in net profit and EUR18.58 billion in revenue, according to a company-provided consensus. Siemens said the result reflected earnings growth across most of its industrial businesses, led by its smart infrastructure business, which reached its highest-ever quarterly profit. Profit at Siemens’ digital industries business fell in the quarter due to declines in the automation businesses, the company said. As disclosed in November, Siemens said it will begin a new share buyback program of up to EUR6 billion over a five-year period. Siemens confirmed its outlook for fiscal 2024.