>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers

  • Gapping up:
    • LL +21.7%, CCO +5.5%, CPRI +4.4%, TWLO +3.5%, CAE +3.1%, BOX +2.5%, ANIK +2.1%, NAAS +2.1%, MRTX +1.1%, SNY +1.1%, RC +0.9%, GLDD +0.6%, MCRB +0.6%, UCBI +0.6%
  • Gapping down:
    • BLTE -37.1%, AAP -24.9%, AMBA -17.7%, PEPG -16.3%, ASLE -9.7%, HRZN -8.1%, HPE -7.9%, SPWH -7.8%, LTRX -7.6%, FRO -5.7%, EGO -5.2%, HPQ -4.8%, PUK -4%, UHAL -3.2%, COIN -2.2%, MERC -1.7%, FRPT -1%, KODK -0.8%, BMBL -0.8%

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 31st of May 2023 V2(+)

>>> Up
* Austriacard Raised to Buy at Raiffeisen Bank; PT 14.50 euros
* BW Epic Kosan Ltd Raised to Buy at Norne Securities (+)
* Chevron Raised to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT $170
* J D Wetherspoon Raised to Buy at HSBC; PT 940 pence
* Mediobanca Raised to Add at AlphaValue/Baader
* Mitchells & Butlers Raised to Buy at HSBC; PT 300 pence

>>> Down
* 3i Cut to Add at Numis; PT 2,285 pence
* Ambarella Cut to Sector Weight at KeyBanc
* Datalex Cut to Neutral at Davy (+)
* DWF Group Cut to Sell at Liberum; PT 50 pence
* Enefit Green Cut to Neutral at Citi; PT 4.90 euros
* Inmobiliaria Colonial Cut to Reduce at AlphaValue/Baader
* Nokian Renkaat Cut to Add at AlphaValue/Baader
* Norrhydro Group Cut to Reduce at Inderes; PT 3.20 euros

>>> Initiation
* Bilia Rated New Buy at DNB Markets; PT 130 kronor
* BNP Paribas Reinstated Neutral at Goldman; PT 76 euros
* Dowlais Rated New Underperform at BNPP Exane; PT 120 pence
* Inventiva SACA ADRs Rated New Buy at Roth MKM; PT $11
* MorphoSys Rated New Buy at UBS; PT 47 euros
* Nice Ltd ADRs Rated New Buy at Mizuho Securities; PT $244
* Ocado Rated New Neutral at Davy; PT 400 pence (+)
* Recordati Rated New Sector Perform at RBC; PT 43.50 euros
* Solid State Rated New Buy at Cenkos Securities (+)
* Vossloh Rated New Buy at Quirin Privatbank AG; PT 51.37 euros (+)

>>> Call
* BT, Hellenic Telecom Are Top Picks at Citi Into Second Quarter
* Chevron Loses Only Sell as JPMorgan Says Premium Has Narrowed
* Femsa Sale of Heineken Shares Removes Overhang Risk: Jefferies (+)
* Recordati Sector Perform at RBC, Premium Reflects Growth Outlook
* Wartsila Gets Upside Catalyst Watch at Citi on Services Business

>>> Stoxx 600 Pre-Market Indications

  • UCB (UNC TH) +0.3%
  • Sanofi (SNW TH) +0.2%
    • Sanofi’s MS Drug Frexalimab Meets Main Goal in Phase 2 Trial
  • Glencore (8GC TH) -1.4%
  • Aixtron (AIXA TH) -1.5%
  • Carl Zeiss Meditec (AFX TH) -1.5%
  • Bechtle (BC8 TH) -1.7%
  • Infineon (IFX TH) -1.9%
  • Air France-KLM (AFR TH) -1.9%
  • BP (BPE5 TH) -2.9%
  • Thyssenkrupp (TKA TH) -3%
  • Prosus (1TY TH) -3.2%
  • Heineken (HNK1 TH) -3.7%
    • Heineken Share Offering by Femsa Prices at €92.75/Share

>>> TradeGate Pre-Market Indications

DAX:
  • Siemens (SIE TH) -0.9%
  • BMW (BMW TH) -1%
  • Infineon (IFX TH) -1.1%
MDAX:
  • Aroundtown (AT1 TH) +1.2%
  • Carl Zeiss Meditec (AFX TH) -1.2%
  • Hensoldt (HAG TH) -1.3%
  • Aixtron (AIXA TH) -1.4%
  • TeamViewer SE (TMV TH) -1.4%
  • Bechtle (BC8 TH) -1.4%
SDAX:
  • MorphoSys (MOR TH) +4%
    • MorphoSys Rated New Buy at UBS; PT 47 euros
  • GFT (GFT TH) +2.8%
  • Vossloh (VOS TH) +1.1%
    • Vossloh Rated New Buy at Quirin Privatbank AG; PT 51.37 euros
  • ADVA Optical (ADV TH) -1.1%

FT : Total and Belgian energy start-up plan US synthetic gas investment

Total and Belgian energy start-up plan US synthetic gas investment
Tree Energy Solutions says Washington’s Inflation Reduction Act has accelerated the methane project

TotalEnergies and a Belgian energy start-up plan to build a $2bn plant in the US to produce synthetic natural gas, underscoring how President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act is drawing clean energy infrastructure investment away from Europe and towards the United States.

The plant, which will probably be in Texas, will use wind and solar power to make hydrogen that will be combined with carbon dioxide to create synthetic methane — which has essentially the same chemical structure as natural gas.

Marco Alverà, chief executive of Tree Energy Solutions, which is focused on the production of green hydrogen, said the incentives provided by the IRA had accelerated the project by several years.

“The US has the best renewable potential when it comes to solar and wind, it has great ease of doing business, and it has available CO₂, available pipes and liquefaction capacity — so it ticks a lot of boxes even before the IRA.”

The downsides to building in the US, such as high inflation and high labour costs, were more than compensated for by the financial benefits of the IRA, Alvera added.

Synthetic methane has gained backing as it can be produced with CO₂ that is pulled from the atmosphere or captured from waste sources, effectively making it carbon neutral to burn.

The synthetic fuel is also identical to natural gas and can be used in existing natural gas infrastructure, including LNG facilities.

Similar projects are already under way in other countries, including Japan, where Tokyo Gas, the city’s top gas supplier, piloted a small-scale project last year, while French utility Engie injected synthetic gas into the French gas distribution network in 2022.

“This synthetic fuel will contribute to the energy transition by helping our customers to decarbonise their activities, notably the ones that are difficult to electrify,” said Stéphane Michel, president of gas, renewables and power at Total.

Tree Energy, which has raised about $200mn since it was launched in 2019, counts mining group Fortescue Future Industries, HSBC and German utility Eon as investors.

Total and Tree Energy are each taking a 50 per cent stake in the project but are looking to raise 80 per cent of the cost through debt. They plan to make a final investment decision in 2024. The plant is expected to produce 100,000 tonnes to 200,000 tonnes of synthetic natural gas per year, and likely to be based in Texas, the companies said. Its carbon dioxide derives from facilities that have natural waste that is being burnt.

The synthetic natural gas produced by this plant will be for the US market and for export to Europe and Asia.

Synthetic gas is “ultimately superior to natural gas from an emissions point of view” as the method reuses CO₂ that would otherwise be released, said Tim Hard, senior vice-president of energy transition at Argus Media.

But “you have a premium feedstock in green hydrogen, which is not cheap to produce, and CO₂ from biomass won’t be cheap either” he added, saying the cost will be the main hurdle for widescale adoption.

Meanwhile, sceptics of synthetic gases point out that there are risks of methane leakage in the production process, while others point out that being carbon neutral is not enough in the face of rapid climate change.

Nevertheless, Alverà believes in demand for the fuel. He thinks the shipping industry, which is increasingly looking at liquefied natural gas as fuel, as well as refineries, steel plants and “even trucks running on LNG” can be potential users of synthetic methane.

He added that TES was in talks with “some of the largest CO₂ emitters in Germany” and also with Japanese entities for the offtake of synthetic natural gas from the Texas plant and from its other future projects.

>>> What to look at today - 31st of May 2023

China’s economic mire reverberated beyond the country’s domestic markets, with Asian stocks falling along with US and European futures Wednesday. An Asian equity gauge headed towards the lowest close in more than two months as regional benchmarks’ losses accelerated after China reported the softest reading in its purchasing managers’ index since December. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index fell more than 2%, taking its retreat from a January high to nearly 24%. South Korea’s Kospi gauge erased gains that earlier had it on course to enter a bull market. Contracts for the S&P 500 and Euro Stoxx 50 dropped on the release of the the Chinese data, which underscored concern over the strength of the recovery in the world’s second-largest economy.   The weak economic data also hurt the offshore yuan that continued its recent decline, depreciating to the weakest level versus the dollar in six months. The Australian and New Zealand currencies, which are sensitive to China’s outlook given their links to commodities trading, also slid. Oil held its biggest decline in four weeks, partly on signs of softer demand from economies including China, and amid sufficient supply ahead of an upcoming OPEC+ meeting. In Tuesday’s trading in the US, the Nasdaq 100 added 0.4% to extend this year’s surge to 31%. Yet it ended off its high for the day as investors assessed the artificial-intelligence hype that’s boosted the index. Nvidia Corp. hovered near $1 trillion in value after announcing several AI-related products. 
AI-related software providers now stand to reap the benefits that Nvidia has laid, according to Cathie Wood, CEO and founder of Ark Investment Management. “For every dollar of hardware that Nvidia sells, software providers, SaaS providers will generate eight dollars in revenue,” she said on Bloomberg Television. Elsewhere in currency markets, a gauge of the dollar edged higher as the greenback rose versus most of its Group-of-10 currency counterparts. Traders also weighed the latest US economic reports, with consumer confidence dropping to a six-month low as views about the labor market and the outlook for business conditions slipped ahead of a deal to raise the debt ceiling.  US After Hours AMBA -12.9%, HPE -6.9%, HPQ -4% lower on earnings; LL +18.5% higher on possible deal interest.

Nikkei -1.69% Hang Seng -2.95% CSI -1.44% Shanghai -1.02% Shenzen -0.85%

Eur$ 1.0695 CNH 7.1168 CNY 7.1045 JPY 139.65 GBP 1.2394 CHF 0.9083 RUB 80.8966 TRY 20.6398 WTI$ 69.22 -0.33% Gold 1,960 +0.02% BTC 27,204 -2.05% ETH 1,872 -1.71%

S&P -0.29% Nasdaq -0.27% EuroStoxx -0.48% FTSE -0.41% Dax -0.49% SMI -0.18%

Macro :
- Stocks, Yuan Sink as China PMI Adds to Angst
- FED'S MESTER SAYS `MAY HAVE TO GO FURTHER' ON RATES: FT
- Cathie Wood Says Software Stocks Are Next AI Bet After Nvidia
- Dimon Says JPMorgan Will Be in China for Good and Bad Times

Keep an eye on :
- ACLN SW : Accelleron to Buy Italy’s Officine Meccaniche Torino
- ALTR PL : Altri Completes Placement of 1.34% Stake in Greenvolt at €6/Shr
- AMBA US : Ambarella Falls as 2Q Revenue Forecast Misses Estimates
- BONAVA SS : Bonava to Sell Operations in St. Petersburg, Russia, for SEK440m
- BT/A LN : BT, Hellenic Telecom Are Top Picks at Citi Into Second Quarter
- CAP FP : Capgemini, Google Cloud Partner on Generative AI Center of
- CAST SS : Castellum to Receive SEK10.2b From Oversubscribed Rights Issue
- CSGN SW : Credit Suisse Drops China Bank Plan on Regulatory Issue: Reuters
- DTG GY : Daimler Probed in US After Freightliner Auto Brake Complaints
- DWNI GY : ISS Backs Elliott Push for Special Audit on Deutsche Wohnen Loan
- ENEL IM : Enel’s New CEO Weighs Management Shakeup Including Changing CFO
- GVOLT PL : Altri to Sell 1.34% of Greenvolt Through Private Placement
- IG IM : Italgas Made Binding Offer for Veolia’s Hydro Assets: CEO to MF
- LEON SW : Leonteq Extends Connection of Tech With Raiffeisen Switzerland
- NETC DC : Netcompany Targets Organic Revenue of at Least DKK8.5b by 2026
- SHAB SS : Handelsbanken Sells Finnish Businesses for €1.3b
- HEIA NA : Mexico’s Femsa Offers About EU3.3b Shares of Heineken Group
- HPQ US : HP Inc 2Q Net Revenue Misses Estimates --> -6.9% in after Hours
- DEC FP : JCDecaux to Buy Clear Channel Italy and Spain Units for €75.1M
- MDM FP : Maisons Du Monde Names Françoise Gri as Chairwoman of Board
- ORA FP : Orange Reports Disruption to Mobile Network in France
- RI FP : Bacardi Is Said Near Ilegal Mezcal Deal After L Catterton Talks
- SAABA SS : Sweden’s Saab Comes In From Cold as Investors Return to Defense
- SAN FP : Sanofi’s MS Drug Frexalimab Meets Main Goal in Phase 2 Trial
- STLA IM : Vulcan, Stellantis in Pact for Phased Renewable Energy Project
- STR AV : Strabag 1Q Output Volume EU3.38B
- SGEN US : Seagen Stockholders Approve Acquisition by Pfizer
- TOM NO : Tomra to Invest €32m Through JV for Packaging Sorting Plant
- UCB BB : UCB’s Bimekizumab Showed Sustained Response in Arthritis Trials
- YIT GH : YIT Withdraws Contemplated Issuance of Green FRN, Debt Tender