Gapping down
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- DLO -8.5%, SGH -2.1%, SMPL -2.1%, SDRL -0.7%, WMT -0.4% (guidance)
Other news:
- RBBN -6.7% (files $250 mln mixed shelf)
- WAL -5.4% (provides Q1 financial update)
- SAFE -0.7% (files mixed shelf)
- NE -0.7% (prices senior notes)
- MSI -0.7% (to Appeal CMA's Unprecedented Final Decision)
Analyst comments:
- ALB -2.8% (downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA Securities)
Gapping up
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- KRUS +8.3%, CAG +2.4%, RGP +0.5%
Other news:
- DRS +5.8% (awarded $1.0 bln contract)
- WBX +5.7% (stock offering)
- JNJ +2.9% (paying $8.9 bln in talc litigation claims)
- BBDC +2.8% (CFO steps down; appoints new CFO)
- GRTS +2.8% (Presentations Evaluating Self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) Against SARS-CoV-2 at ECCMID 2023)
- AGO +2.7% (Assured Guaranty's Asset Management Business to combine with Sound Point Capital Management)
- HUT +2.2% (reports 131 Bitcoin mined in March)
- PLTR +2% (Palantir Technologies and Microsoft (MSFT) expand cloud partnership to public sector)
- BLU +2% (Positive Results from its Phase 1 Bioavailability Equivalence Study)
- AUPH +1.9% (announces promising topline data from renal biopsy sub-study of the aurora trial)
- PBI +1.8% (Hestia Capital Management calls for company to replace CEO according to WSJ)
- LDI +1.3% (Announces Settlement and Cooperation Agreement with Anthony Hsieh)
Analyst comments:
- LTHM +2.9% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA Securities)
- SLM +2.2% (upgraded to Overweight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley)
- SEE +2% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS)
>>> Up
* Acciona Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 233 euros
* Alfa Laval Raised to Buy at SEB Equities; PT 430 kronor
* Atlas Copco Raised to Buy at Handelsbanken
* Attendo Raised to Buy at SEB Equities; PT 40 kronor
* Axfood Raised to Buy at ABG; PT 285 kronor
* CAF Raised to Outperform at Oddo BHF; PT 33 euros
* DWS Raised to Buy at Citi; PT 33.50 euros
* Endomines Finland Raised to Accumulate at Inderes; PT 5.50 euros (+)
* Know IT Raised to Buy at Handelsbanken
* Metso Outotec Raised to Buy at Citi
* Neoen Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 32 euros
* Neoen Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 32 euros
* S Immo Raised to Buy at SRC Research; PT 18 euros
* Siemens Raised to Buy at SocGen; PT 185 euros
* SIG Group Raised to Buy at Stifel; PT 26.70 Swiss francs
>>> Down
>>> Down
* Addnode Group AB Cut to Hold at SEB Equities; PT 125 kronor
* H&R Cut to Sell at DZ Bank; PT 5 euros
* J. Martins Cut to Market Perform at Bernstein; PT 22 euros
* K+S Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 22 euros
* Mycronic Cut to Hold at Handelsbanken
>>> Initiation
* Mycronic Cut to Hold at Handelsbanken
>>> Initiation
* Acciona Energia Rated New Equal-Weight at Barclays; PT 40 euros
* Aker Solutions Reinstated Outperform at RBC; PT 48 kroner
* Seacrest Petroleo Bermuda Rated New Outperform at Itau BBA
* Stroeer Rated New Buy at SocGen; PT 65 euros
* Stroeer Rated New Buy at SocGen; PT 65 euros
* Subsea 7 Reinstated Outperform at RBC; PT 161 kroner
* Technip Energies Reinstated Sector Perform at RBC; PT 24 euros
>>> Call
>>> Call
* Barclays Prefers US-Exposed European Utilities; Acciona Raised (+)
* Citi Still Underweight Traditional AMs, Raises DWS on De-Rating
* Direct Line Double-Upgraded at Citi as Motor Insurance Inflects
* Energy Services Sector Benefiting From Greater Demand, RBC Says
* H&M Gets Another Upgrade as MS Turns More Positive on Retail
* H&M Gets Another Upgrade as MS Turns More Positive on Retail
* Meta Price Target Raised at Jefferies on Cost Cuts, Buybacks (+)
* Neoen Raised as Morgan Stanley Says Capital Increase Curbs Risks
* Wartsila Upgraded at Morgan Staney on Margin Improvement Levers
Farallon Capital to Wage Proxy Battle at Biotech Firm
Farallon has nominated three directors to the board of Exelixis
Hedge fund Farallon Capital Management is planning to wage a proxy battle at biotech company Exelixis Inc., EXEL 0.36% according to people familiar with the matter.
Farallon has nominated three director candidates that it flagged in a late-March securities filing, the people said. At the time, the firm hadn’t decided to move forward with a proxy fight and was still trying to work with the company. The window to nominate directors ran from Feb. 24 to March 26, according to proxy materials.
Farallon has a roughly 7.2% stake in Alameda, Calif.-based Exelixis, which develops cancer-fighting drugs, according to the filing. It has been an investor in the business since 2018.
Exelixis shares have fallen by more than a third since early 2018, though they are up about 20% so far this year. The stock closed Tuesday at $19.55, giving the company a market capitalization of roughly $6.3 billion.
Farallon has been in talks with Exelixis over the fund’s main issue, research and development spending, but the discussions recently fell apart, the people said. Farallon thinks Exelixis lacks focus in how it spends its R&D budget, which is expected to top $1 billion in 2023, the people said.
Farallon is typically not an activist investor. The San Francisco firm, with nearly $40 billion in assets under management, tends to keep its engagements with companies private.
Farallon previously pushed, along with other funds, for change at Toshiba Corp. A member of the firm ended up joining the Japanese industrial company’s board last June. (Toshiba just agreed to a $15 billion-plus private-equity buyout offer.)
Farallon argues that Exelixis has been unable to translate its library of cancer treatments into value for shareholders, delivering returns of less than 1% annually in the more than two decades since its initial public offering, according to the people.
Farallon wants the board to communicate a plan to deliver cash flows from its flagship product, known as cabozantinib, back to shareholders. It estimates the value of cabozantinib’s cash flow is more than $33 per share alone. (Exelixis in late March said it authorized the repurchase of up to $550 million of its common stock before the end of 2023.)
Farallon’s three nominees are Tom Heyman, formerly of Johnson & Johnson ; Dave Johnson, a managing partner at health-care-focused activist fund Caligan Partners LP; and Bob Oliver, the former chief executive of Otsuka America Pharmaceutical Inc.
There have been a number of proxy fights launched lately, but few have gone the distance.
Third Point LLC pulled plans to wage one at Bath & Body Works Inc. ; Nelson Peltz called off a proxy battle at Walt Disney Co. ; and Elliott Investment Management LP decided not to nominate directors at Salesforce Inc. after preparing to do so. Carl Icahn is in the midst of a proxy fight at biotech Illumina Inc.
- OMV (OMV TH) +0.9%
- Maersk (DP4B TH) +0.7%
- Maersk CEO Says Tech Spending to Fuel Gains in 2024: Berlingkse
- H&M (HMSB TH) +0.3%
- H&M Gets Another Upgrade as MS Turns More Positive on Retail
- ASML (ASME TH) -1%
- Kion (KGX TH) -1%
- K+S (SDF TH) -1%
- K+S Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 22 euros
- Nexans (NXS TH) -8.8%
- Nexans Offering by Invexans Prices at EU80/Share
DAX:
- Siemens (SIE TH) +0.4%
- Siemens Raised to Buy at SocGen; PT 185 euros
MDAX:
- Telefonica Deutschland (O2D TH) +0.9%
- K+S (SDF TH) -0.8%
- K+S Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 22 euros
- Nordex (NDX1 TH) -4%
- Nordex Launches ~€350 million Green Convertible Bond Offering
SDAX:
- Shop Apotheke (SAE TH) +5.1%
- Shop Apotheke Prelim 1Q Revenue Beats Estimates
- Grenke (GLJ TH) +2.9%
- Grenke 1Q Factoring New Business Volume EU192.0M
- MorphoSys (MOR TH) +2.6%
- Morphosys expects results on pelabresib as early as the end of 2023
Former Disney Exec Kevin Mayer Looks to Double VC Fund Size to $1 Billion
THE TAKEAWAY
- Smash Capital, an investment firm run by a cadre of former Disney executives including Kevin Mayer, is looking to raise as much as $500 million, doubling the size of the fund.
Smash Capital, an investment firm co-founded by Disney veterans including Kevin Mayer, is seeking to raise as much as $500 million in fresh capital, according to two people familiar with the matter. The new fundraising would supplement half a billion dollars the fund previously raised.
The fund, which is separate from Mayer’s Blackstone-backed venture, Candle Media, invests in consumer internet and technology startups. Its portfolio includes stakes in Epic Games, the videogame company behind Fortnite; Fever, a platform that helps people find out about concerts and other live events; and fantasy sports company DraftKings, which went public in 2020.
The current fundraising effort has netted an additional $200 million so far, with the firm expecting to reach or exceed its $500 million goal by June, the people said.
Smash is setting an ambitious target during a challenging fundraising period for venture capital firms. Limited partners, the wealthy individuals and institutions that invest in VC funds, have tightened their belts amid the broader correction in tech equity prices, which has made it harder for fund managers to raise capital. It’s much easier, though, for well-known executives with an established history and expertise in the industry in which they’re specializing.
Mayer co-founded Smash along with fellow Disney alums Eric Garland and Evan Richter, as well as Brad Twohig, a former partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. The firm’s venture partners include many former Disney executives: Ed Catmull, a co-founder of Pixar and a former head of Disney Animation; Ben Sherwood, former co-chair of Disney’s media networks business; and Andy Mooney, former chair of Disney’s consumer products unit. Mayer’s co-founder in Candle Media, Tom Staggs, another Disney veteran, is also involved with Smash Capital as a partner.
Mayer was an executive at Disney for almost 15 years before leaving in 2020. After that he briefly served as TikTok’s CEO.
ExxonMobil says low-carbon business could one day eclipse oil and gas
Texas oil major says government incentives are critical to profiting from energy transition
ExxonMobil’s new low-carbon businesses could one day be more lucrative than its fossil fuel production, a top executive said, as the US oil major laid out ambitious plans to generate tens of billions of dollars from biofuels, hydrogen and carbon capture within a decade.
The Texas-based oil producer on Tuesday gave investors the most comprehensive view yet of its energy transition plans, saying it expects to profit from carbon-cutting technologies even as it expands oil and gas output.
Exxon’s share price hit a record in February after high oil and gas prices drove bumper 2022 profits. But Dan Ammann told investors that the low- carbon business he runs could eventually be worth “hundreds of billions of dollars” and grow to be “larger than ExxonMobil’s base business is today as the world approaches net zero”.
That growth depends on finding ways to bring down the costs of hydrogen fuel and carbon capture and on government incentives, he added. This could take the form of carbon taxes or economic subsidies such as those in the Biden administration’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, which included extensive funding for climate projects.
“In order for the energy transition to be successful, it has to be made economically viable, and that’s a big part of our job and building this business,” Ammann told the Financial Times.
Exxon’s critics argue the company’s continued investment in fossil fuels runs counter to international efforts to slash greenhouse gas emissions. They also contend it has not proven that it can build large-scale carbon capture and hydrogen projects.
But Ammann, who moved to Exxon last year after running General Motors’ self-driving car unit, said the low-carbon business was starting to build “momentum”.
In recent months, the company has announced a number of hydrogen and carbon capture projects, mostly along the US Gulf Coast, and it says they could start generating cash by 2025.
“Projects are moving off PowerPoint and into the real world, and that’s really encouraging,” he said.
Exxon said it planned to spend about $17bn on the low-carbon business through to the end of 2027, about 10 per cent of what it aims to spend on fossil fuel projects over the same period. Amman said most of that would be in the US “driven by the Inflation Reduction Act”. He contrasted the American incentives with Europe’s more “prescriptive” approach that mandates shifts away from fossil fuel. He said the latter makes Europe less attractive for investment.
Kathy Mikells, Exxon’s chief financial officer, said on Tuesday that last year’s record profits meant there was “plenty of capital in order to ensure the growth of this business”.