>>> What to look at today - 3rd of March 2022

Stocks rose Thursday in the wake of reassuring comments on monetary-policy tightening from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, while crude oil extended gains sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine Japan spurred a climb in an Asian share index, while European and U.S. futures were steady in the slipstream of broad rallies for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100. Powell in testimony to U.S. lawmakers backed a measured Fed interest-rate liftoff and vigilance on inflation, while indicating the world’s biggest economy can weather higher borrowing costs. The sanctions imposed on Russia for the invasion have caused traders to back away from its resources, stoking fears of shortfalls in energy, grains and metals. Oil hit the highest since 2008 and a commodity index is at a record. Russia’s ostracism continues: MSCI Inc. and FTSE Russell are cuttingRussian equities from widely-tracked indexes, isolating the stocks from a large segment of the investment-fund industry. Russia’s credit rating was cut to junk by Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings amid doubts about its capability and willingness to service debt.

Nikkei +0,70% Hang Seng +0,29% CSI -0,59% Shanghai -0,09% Shenzen -0,83%

Eur$ 1,1094 6,3226 CNY 6,3194

S&P -0,07% Nasdaq -0,21% EuroStoxx -O,57% FTSE -0,42% Dax -0,67% SMI -0,73%

Macro :
- MSCI Pulls Russian Equities Out of Its Key Emerging-Market Index
- Abramovich Says To Sell Chelsea Football Club
- SEC Scrutinizes NFT Market Over Illegal Crypto Token Offerings

Keep an eye on :
- BMW GY : BMW to Invest More Than $200m at South Carolina Plant
- BRBY LN : Burberry Pauses All Shipments to Russia Until Further Notice
- MBG GY : Mercedes Joins Corporate Exodus From Russia With Export Halt
- DRW3 GY : Draegerwerk FY Ebit Misses Estimates
- EDV LN : *ENDEAVOUR MINING, HOWDEN TO JOIN FTSE 100 INDEX
- EVR LN : *EVRAZ AND POLYMETAL INTERNATIONAL TO LEAVE FTSE 100 INDEX
- FORTUM FH : Fortum Seeks to Operate Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant Until 2050
- FORTUM FH : Fortum 4Q Profits Beat Estimates; Stops Russia Investments (1)
- GALP PL : Galp to Suspend New Purchases of Oil Products From Russia
- G1A GY : GEA Group Sees 2022 Adj Ebitda EU630M to EU690M, Est. EU676.1M
- G IM : CVC, Sapiens in Race for Control of Italy’s Insurtech RGI: Sole
- HAG GY : Hensoldt Secondary Offering Expected to Price at EU21/Shr: Terms
- KGX GY : Kion 2022 Adjusted Ebit Forecast Beats Estimates
- LOGN SW : Logitech’s FY23 Guidance Ahead of Morgan Stanley Expectations
- MC FP : LVMH Group Says Providing Employees in Ukraine With Assistance
- LHA GY : Lufthansa 4Q Adjusted Ebit Loss EU271M, Est. Loss EU212.3M
- MGGT LN : Meggitt FY Organic Rev. Misses Estimates
- MRK GY : Merck KGaA FY Adjusted Ebitda Meets Estimates
- NFC LN : Next Fifteen to Raise Up to GBP50m to Fund Purchase of Engine UK
- ONTEX BB : Ontex’s Top Investor GBL Is Said to Weigh Buyout of Diaper Maker
- PAGE LN : Pagegroup FY Pretax Profit Meets Estimates (1)
- POLY LN : *EVRAZ AND POLYMETAL INTERNATIONAL TO LEAVE FTSE 100 INDEX
- PRX NA : Prosus Reviewing $6 Billion Russian Technology Investments
- PSM GY : ProSieben 2022 Adjusted Ebitda Forecast Misses Estimates
- RTO LN : Rentokil FY Revenue Misses Estimates
- SSIT LN : Seraphim Space Investment Seeks Over GBP100M in New Funds: Sky
- GLE FP : SocGen Says Russia Exposure EU18.6B, Includes EU15.4B at Rosbank
- SWON SW : SoftwareONE FY Gross Profit CHF855.1M Vs. CHF729.6M Y/y
- SAX GY : Stroeer FY Adjusted Ebitda Beats Estimates
- SUBC NO : Subsea 7 4Q Adj Ebitda Misses Estimates, Recommends Div NOK1/Shr
- HO FP : Thales FY Ebit Meets Estimates
- TIT IM : Telecom Italia Records $9.6 Billion Loss Amid Budget Cleanup
- TIT IM : Telecom Italia: Ardian-Led Group Bid for Indirect Inwit Stake
- VACN SW : VAT FY Net Sales CHF901.2M
- VOW GY : Portugal Light Vehicle Sales Rose 33% in Feb., Acap Says
- VOW GY : VDA Sees More Disruption to German Car Output Due to Ukraine War

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 3rd of March 2022

>>> Up
* CVS Group Raised to Buy at Numis; PT 2,600 pence
* Entra Raised to Neutral at Goldman; PT 180 kroner
* Neste Raised to Buy at Inderes; PT 44 euros
* Shurgard Raised to Buy at SocGen; PT 62 euros
* Spire Healthcare Raised to Add at Numis; PT 265 pence

>>> Down
* Avanza Cut to Hold at DNB Markets; PT 255 kronor
* BAE Cut to Hold at DZ Bank; PT 740 pence
* Belships Cut to Hold at Norne Securities; PT 22 kroner
* EcoOnline Holding Cut to Hold at Pareto Securities; PT 17 kroner
* Hikma Cut at Morgan Stanley on Growing Challenges in Generics
* Nokian Renkaat Cut to Hold at Handelsbanken; PT 16 euros
* Raute Cut to Reduce at Inderes; PT 16.50 euros

>>> Inititiation
* Azerion Group N.V Rated New Neutral at Oddo BHF; PT 10 euros
* Poolbeg Pharma Rated New Corporate at Finncap; PT 15 pence

>>> Call
* Asos’s Suspended Sales to Russia Is Another Headwind: Jefferies
* Darktrace Results ‘Impressive,’ Show Path to Growth: Jefferies
* Inficon New Guidance Implies More Double-Digit Growth: Jefferies
* Polymetal PT Cut to 500 pence from 1,000 pence at Berenberg
* Russia Considers How to Keep Hold of Boeing, Airbus Planes: RBC
* Thales Earnings in Line, Buyback a Key Positive: Jefferies
* UCB Upgraded at Morgan Stanley on Clarity Following Results

>>> TradeGate Pre-Market Indications

DAX:
  • Deutsche Bank (DBK TH) +1.2%
  • Siemens Energy (ENR TH) +1.1%
  • Porsche SE (PAH3 TH) +1.1%
  • Fresenius SE (FRE TH) +1%
  • Deutsche Post (DPW TH) +0.9%
MDAX:
  • Kion (KGX TH) +3.9%
    • Kion 2022 Adjusted Ebit Forecast Beats Estimates
  • ProSieben (PSM TH) +3.3%
    • ProSieben 2022 Adjusted Ebitda Forecast Misses Estimates
  • Evotec SE (EVT TH) +3.2%
  • Jungheinrich (JUN3 TH) +1.8%
  • Daimler Truck (DTG TH) +1.6%
  • Lufthansa (LHA TH) -0.6%
    • Lufthansa Says Pandemic Rebound Slowed as War Sends Oil Soaring
  • Rheinmetall (RHM TH) -1.6%
    • Shares are up 42% this week
SDAX:
  • DIC Asset (DIC TH) +2.3%
  • Schaeffler (SHA TH) +1.9%
  • Deutz (DEZ TH) +1.8%
    • DWS Investment GmbH Raised Deutz Voting Rights to 5.06%
  • MorphoSys (MOR TH) +1.4%
  • Heidelberger Druck (HDD TH) +1.4%
  • Nordex (NDX1 TH) -0.8%

>>> Stoxx 600 Pre-Market Indications

  • Kion (KGX TH) +4%
    • Kion 2022 Adjusted Ebit Forecast Beats Estimates
  • Rio Tinto (RIO1 TH) +3.1%
    • Watch Europe Miners as Iron Ore Up, Metals Rise on Trade Turmoil
  • Ericsson (ERCB TH) +2.9%
  • ProSieben (PSM TH) +2.6%
    • ProSieben 2022 Adjusted Ebitda Forecast Misses Estimates
  • OMV (OMV TH) +2.6%
  • BAE (BSP TH) +2.3%
  • Nibe (NJB TH) +2.3%
  • Evotec SE (EVT TH) +2.1%
  • ING (INN1 TH) +2.1%
    • ING to Redeem $1B 6.875% Perpetual Added Tier 1 Convertibles
  • Fortum (FOT TH) +2%
    • Fortum 4Q Comparable Ebitda Beats Estimates
  • Lufthansa (LHA TH) -0.5%
    • Lufthansa Says Pandemic Rebound Clouded as War Lifts Oil (1)
  • Prosus (1TY TH) -0.8%
  • Kering (PPX TH) -1.4%
  • IAG (INR TH) -1.8%
  • Banco BPM (BPM TH) -2.3%
  • Rheinmetall (RHM TH) -2.4%
  • Rolls-Royce (RRU TH) -3.1%

FT : Mikhail Fridman loses control of LetterOne after sanctions

Mikhail Fridman loses control of LetterOne after sanctions
Russian tycoon and fellow billionaire Petr Aven agree to have stakes in London-based investment group ‘frozen’

Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven have stepped down from London-based investment group LetterOne after the EU imposed sanctions on the Russian billionaires this week.

LetterOne, set up almost a decade ago after the $14bn sale of their stake in oil group TNK-BP to Rosneft, has become a big investor across European energy, retail and telecoms with responsibility for more than 125,000 staff.

Chair Lord Mervyn Davies, a former UK Labour government minister, will take control of the group, with Fridman and Aven resigning from the board.

Davies told the Financial Times that the billionaires had agreed to have no further involvement in the business.

Fridman and Aven together own slightly less than 50 per cent of the group, which means that the company has avoided the sanctions imposed on them as individuals.

Their stakes would be “frozen”, Davies said, with no rights as shareholders or dividends. They would not be able to sell the stakes while under sanctions, he said, while the board had no obligation to give their shareholder rights back once the sanctions lift.

Staff at LetterOne have been told not to talk to the pair, who have been cut off from its buildings along with any access to documents.

In the UK, LetterOne owns high street healthcare retailer Holland & Barrett and has agreed to fund a $1bn regional broadband network. In the EU, it owns Spain’s Dia supermarket chain, a stake in telecoms group Turkcell and a large minority position in German energy group Wintershall Dea. It also owns healthcare services in the US.

Davies will work on behalf of the other investors in the group, including Fridman’s partners German Khan and Alexei Kuzmichev, and will look to bring in three new non-executive directors to the board to ensure that it can “carry on as a long-term independent investor”. 

“We have a responsibility to staff and creditors, he said, adding that Fridman and Aven “cannot have access to any aspect of this business. It’s the right thing to separate two shareholders who have been sanctioned.” 

Fridman, who also owns a £65mn home in London’s Highgate, said this was the “right thing to do for the company”.

The EU on Monday imposed sanctions on the pair for their alleged support of Russian president Vladimir Putin. They both deny the association, and have said that they will take legal action to overturn the measures.

While LetterOne and its various businesses are not directly affected by sanctions, the EU’s move has meant a reputational risk for the group, particularly as it seeks to do further deals in the UK and EU. Davies said the move would help maintain support for the business from banks and other stakeholders.

Fridman told the Financial Times late last year that the group had a sizeable war chest for new deals, with a particular interest in renewables and telecoms. It held $22.3bn in net assets in 2020, with cash of more than $4bn.

In Russia Fridman and his partners own the country’s largest privately held lender Alfa-Bank and supermarket chain X5, although these are not part of the LetterOne empire.

The billionaires said on Tuesday they “were deeply disappointed to have been named . . . and are profoundly shocked by the demonstrably false allegations . . . purporting to justify the basis on which they have been sanctioned.”

The pair said they would contest the “spurious and unfounded basis for the imposition of these sanctions — vigorously and through all means available to them — to reverse unwarranted and unnecessary damage to the livelihoods and prosperity of their many employees, customers, partners and stakeholders, and the businesses that they and their partners have built up over the past 25 years”.

FT : Pharo Management takes a hit from tumbling Russian debt prices

Pharo Management takes a hit from tumbling Russian debt prices
$11bn emerging-market hedge fund also held Ukrainian bonds

Pharo Management has emerged as one of the highest-profile hedge funds to have been wrongfooted by the Ukraine crisis, underscoring how many global investors were caught off-guard by Moscow’s invasion of its neighbour.

London-based Pharo, which has $11bn in assets under management and is one of the world’s biggest emerging-market hedge funds, held the debt of Russia and Ukraine as the conflict erupted last week, according to people familiar with its positions.

The firm’s $5.2bn Gaia fund lost 10.7 per cent last month, while its $4.3bn Macro fund lost 2.9 per cent, the people said. Gaia has suffered only one year of negative performance since it launched in 2008 and has annualised returns of nearly 11 per cent. Macro has been down just twice since 2005 and has annualised returns of 9.2 per cent.

Pharo declined to comment.

The losses come as international investors with at least $150bn in Russian securities grapple with how to deal with positions they hold in the region, which have fallen in value sharply and in many cases are now extremely difficult or even impossible to sell. In spite of the build-up of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border in recent months, many fund managers had believed an all-out war to be unlikely.

Funds with more than €4bn in assets have so far suspended redemptions by their investors, with more expected to follow.

Ukraine’s 10-year dollar-denominated bonds have tumbled from 86 cents on the dollar in early February to 26 cents, according to Bloomberg data. Russia’s 25-year external debt, meanwhile, has dropped from 110 cents to just over 20 cents, according to Bloomberg. Both of these prices point to severe default risks.

Pharo, which is headed by former Merrill Lynch trader Guillaume Fonkenell, quickly sold its position in Russia following the invasion, the people said. The firm told investors that Ukraine’s bonds, however, appeared to be lowly priced compared with where they had traded in the past, for instance during a debt restructuring in 2015.

The market shocks from the outbreak of war come during a tough start to 2022 for hedge funds, many of which have been hit by a sharp sell-off in technology stocks as investors reposition for rising interest rates. Hedge funds on average were down 1.8 per cent this year to Monday, according to data group HFR.

Several other hedge funds have been left holding positions in Russia and Ukraine.

London-based hedge fund Amia Capital, a prominent investor in emerging markets such as Zambia, was an investor in Ukraine’s bonds and warrants going into the conflict, say people familiar with its positioning. The fund had suffered mid-single-digit losses this year ahead of the conflict, two of the people said. Amia declined to comment.

And emerging-market investment firm Polunin Capital Partners, also based in London, held Russian stocks including Gazprom, Magnit and Surgutneftegaz as conflict erupted, according to investor documentation seen by the Financial Times.

It told investors that it was writing down the dollar valuation of Russian stocks not currently trading by nearly 57 per cent and said it was looking into the controlling ownership of companies in its portfolio to check for sanctions risk.

It wrote that it had made a “misjudgement” in taking such positions and added that “the global reaction suggests that a line has been crossed which will make it extremely difficult for investors to re-establish confidence in Russia”.

“The worst-case scenario involves an indefinite freeze on Russian assets which would ultimately require them to be written down to zero,” it wrote, although it added that a “more likely scenario” was that the US’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and other agencies allow investors to reduce exposure to Russia over time.

Polunin did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

FT : UK eyes seizing the property of oligarchs hit with sanctions

UK eyes seizing the property of oligarchs hit with sanctions
Ministers discuss plans to take residences off business tycoons without paying compensation

UK cabinet minister Michael Gove is drawing up plans to seize British property owned by Russian oligarchs with links to President Vladimir Putin, without paying them compensation.

Ukrainians fleeing their homeland could be housed in the lavish UK residences of oligarchs hit with sanctions under the proposals discussed by Gove, the levelling-up secretary, and other ministers, according to government insiders.

Boris Johnson, UK prime minister, who was accused by Labour on Wednesday of failing to take sufficient action against Putin’s allies following his invasion of Ukraine, is said to be supportive of Gove’s plans to seize the land and property of sanctioned oligarchs.

The proposals are likely to require legislation, and government lawyers have concerns the plans would be subject to legal challenges because they would undermine UK property rights. No final government decision has been reached on whether to proceed.

Gove’s plans would apply to nine oligarchs who have been sanctioned by the UK, including Kirill Shamalov, Russia’s youngest billionaire and Putin’s former son-in-law. The government has proposed these people will have their UK assets frozen and be unable to travel to Britain.

Liz Truss, UK foreign secretary, on Monday said the government was working through a “hit list” of oligarchs with links to Putin, with a view to imposing sanctions on them.

Johnson told the House of Commons on Wednesday: “The vice is tightening on the Putin regime and it will continue to tighten.”

One government insider involved in Gove’s plans said “freezing assets is not enough” and officials in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities were “looking at seizing the land and property of sanctioned individuals”.

A Whitehall official said civil servants were examining “very carefully” what steps would be needed to hand powers to ministers to “swiftly acquire specific land and property in the UK owned by a sanctioned person, without the need to pay them compensation”.

Another government insider said ministers were discussing using oligarchs’ properties for housing Ukrainians who have had to flee the war in their country.

Johnson is coming under pressure from Labour to match EU sanctions introduced since Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which cover prominent Russian oligarchs, Kremlin officials and other Putin allies.

While the UK has targeted nine oligarchs to date, the EU has sanctioned more than 25 Russians with links to Putin.

Sir Keir Starmer, Labour leader, on Wednesday asked Johnson why Igor Shuvalov, Russia’s former deputy prime minister, was not on the UK’s sanctions list given he had already been targeted by the EU.

Starmer used parliamentary privilege to repeat claims that Shuvalov owns two flats worth about £11.4mn on a combined basis in central London.

“Last week, Putin summoned to the Kremlin the cronies who prop up his regime,” said Starmer. “They dip their hands in the blood of Putin’s war.

“Among them was Igor Shuvalov, Putin’s former deputy prime minister. Shuvalov owns two flats, not five minutes walk from this House. They’re worth over £11mn. He is on the EU sanctions list, but he’s not on the UK sanctions list. When will the prime minister sort this out?”

Starmer said Shuvalov’s properties were registered under a “shell company” and the true owner was only known because of information obtained by Alexei Navalny, the Russian dissident and leading opponent of Putin.

Johnson said the UK government was willing to “sanction any individual [and] any company connected” to Russia’s leadership, but would not comment on individual cases.

The government on Monday unveiled a much-delayed economic crime bill that will establish a register requiring anonymous foreign owners of UK land and property to reveal their identities. It is meant to stop people hiding their ownership of property behind shell companies registered in offshore tax havens.

Starmer said that Labour supported the economic crime bill but warned the new rules would not come into force for existing foreign owners of UK property until 18 months after the legislation is approved.

“Why are we giving Putin’s cronies 18 months to quietly launder their money out of the UK property market and into another safe haven?” he asked.

Johnson said the government would work with Labour to “strengthen and accelerate the package of measures” outlined in the bill.

FT : EU looks at preventing use of crypto to avoid Russia sanctions

EU looks at preventing use of crypto to avoid Russia sanctions
Lagarde among officials calling for action on tougher enforcement of financial penalties

The EU is considering new measures to ensure digital assets are not used to dodge sanctions against Russia as the bloc toughens its enforcement of the financial penalties imposed on Moscow in the past week.

Highlight text

EU finance ministers and other officials discussed on Wednesday the risk that cryptocurrencies could be used to circumvent sanctions, officials said.

Among those who pushed in a video conference call for action was Christine Lagarde, the European Central Bank president. Bruno Le Maire, the French finance minister, said after the meeting that steps were under consideration to “further increase the effectiveness” of the sanctions and avoid any circumvention of the measures — including through cryptocurrencies. The commission is now expected to consider proposals to deal with the issue.

The discussion in Europe comes as lawmakers in the US and UK also raised concerns that crypto transactions could become a back door for moving money to and from Russia, undermining western efforts to isolate the country from the global financial system.

Many large crypto exchanges, including those based in offshore jurisdictions, have pledged to honour existing sanctions but resisted calls for a blanket ban on dealing with Russia. Several exchanges said broad restrictions would hurt ordinary Russians and run contrary to cryptocurrencies’ founding libertarian ideology.

“If people want to avoid sanctions there’s always multiple methods,” Changpeng Zhao, Binance chief executive, told the BBC on Wednesday. “You can do it using cash, using diamonds, using gold. I don’t think crypto is anything special.”

During the call, Lagarde argued in favour of legislation so that firms engaged in the issuance of crypto assets or providing services related to them should not deal with clients in Russia, according to people familiar with the meeting. The goal, she argued, was to avoid the use of digital assets to get around the sanctions and this week’s decision to disconnect seven Russian banks from Swift.

In an interview with the FT earlier, Paolo Gentiloni, the EU’s economics commissioner, said authorities had noted an increase in the use of cryptocurrencies in recent days, which he said “could be a way to bypass the measures taken to freeze the assets in Russia.” 

In the US, a group of Democrats on the influential Senate banking committee wrote a letter to Janet Yellen, the Treasury secretary, expressing their worries that cryptocurrency could be used to evade sanctions.

“Strong enforcement of sanctions compliance in the cryptocurrency industry is critical given that digital assets, which allow entities to bypass the traditional financial system, may increasingly be used as a tool for sanctions evasion,” wrote the senators, including Sherrod Brown of Ohio, the chair of the panel, Mark Warner of Virginia, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.

The lawmakers said they were worried that the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the arm of the Treasury which oversees US sanction policy, “has not developed sufficiently strong and effective procedures for enforcement in the cryptocurrency industry.”

The US Treasury declined to comment on the letter, but a US official noted that it would be difficult for Russia and its wealthy individuals to use cryptocurrency in a substantial way to evade sanctions.

“You can’t run a G20 economy on crypto. Big banks in an economy need real liquidity and conducting large transactions in virtual currency is likely to be slow and expensive”, the official said.

UK lawmakers have also responded to the risk of crypto being used to evade or undermine sanctions. “We are considering how the UK along with its allies can prevent crypto assets from emerging as loopholes to evade sanctions,” Baroness Penn, a government whip, said in the House of Lords on Wednesday.

UK MP Tom Tugendhat, chair of the foreign affairs committee, and Tory peer Lord Sarfraz wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority this week, urging the regulator to issue new guidance to crypto firms on the sanctions regime. “There remains a considerable risk of Russian individuals and entities sanctioned last week, continuing to trade in cryptocurrency assets,” they said.

The FCA said it had “reached out to each crypto firm registered with us to ensure that they are aware of sanctions and their responsibilities” and was “working with partners to actively monitor these firms”. “We have made it clear to crypto firms, banks and others that we expect them to focus on their sanction controls and, with our partners, we will be supervising their actions.”

>>> US After Hours Summary: SNOW -23.2%, VEEV -10.2%, AEO -8.2%, OKTA -5.5% lowe

After Hours Summary: SNOW -23.2%, VEEV -10.2%, AEO -8.2%, OKTA -5.5% lower on earnings; PSTG +10.9%, CHPT +7.4%, BOX +6%, ZUO +5.3% higher on earnings; CDR +9.2% higher on deal to sell itself

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: IOT +14.7%, PSTG +10.9%, RELY +10.1%, GSM +9.3%, SGFY +8.1%, CHPT +7.4%, BOX +6%, PLAN +5.9%, ZUO +5.3% (also announces $400 mln strategic investment from Silver Lake), FLYW +4.7%, JXN +4.4% (also increases share repurchase authorization by $300 mln, increases dividend by 10%), VLD +3.1%, NTNX +3%, CPNG +2.6%, SPLK +1.6% (also names Gary Steele as CEO), VSCO +1.4%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: RMNI +12.6% (files for $200 mln mixed securities shelf offering; also files for offering by selling shareholders; also authorizes $15 mln stock repurchase plan; also reports earnings), CDR +9.2% (co to sell itself and its assets in a series of related all-cash transactions valued at more than $29/sh), MRAM +6.8% (names new CEO), MDRX +2.4% (to sell net assets of Allscripts Hospitals and Large Physician Practices business segment), MGM +1.2% (authorizes new $2 bln share repurchase program), SUM +0.5% (authorizes new $250 mln share repurchase program), SWK +0.5% (announces $2 bln accelerated share repurchase program to be completed in 2Q22), NDAQ +0.4% (reports February 2022 metrics), AAN +0.1% (increases share repurchase program to $250 mln from the original $150 mln), TNL +0.1% (increases dividend)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: SNOW -23.2% (also to acquire Streamlit), WEAV -17.4%, RSI -10.9%, VEEV -10.2%, HEAR -8.7%, AEO -8.2%, ASND -7.8% (also provides business update), OKTA -5.5%, KIDS -5.2%, AI -4.6%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: NCNA -58.5% (announces discontinuation of NuTide:121 study), KREF -3.8% (stock offering), SAFE -3.6% (commences public offering of 1.75 mln shares; announces concurrent private placement), PLNT -1.1% (stock offering), AMRX -0.2% (files mixed securities shelf offering), BA -0.2% (awarded $500 mln Navy contract), PD -0.1% (to acquire Catalytic)