WSJ : Lilly Agrees to Buys Trio of Vaccine Developers

Lilly Agrees to Buys Trio of Vaccine Developers
Weight-loss drug market leader is renewing focus on infectious-disease prevention


Eli Lilly LLY 2.24%increase; green up pointing triangle agreed to acquire three vaccine developers in deals worth up to nearly $4 billion combined, the company told The Wall Street Journal.

The deals, to be announced later Tuesday, mark a new push by the weight-loss drug market leader into infectious-disease prevention.

The details
Indianapolis-based Lilly has agreed to acquire Curevo, LimmaTech Biologics and Vaccine Co.

Curevo is developing a shingles vaccine that Lilly believes could be as effective as the current standard but with reduced side effects, said Daniel Skovronsky, Lilly’s chief scientific and product officer. Lilly could pay up to $1.5 billion in cash for Curevo, including an undisclosed upfront payment and a potential subsequent payment if a certain milestone is met.

LimmaTech is developing vaccines against bacterial pathogens including Staphylococcus aureus. Lilly agreed to pay up to $780 million in cash for LimmaTech, including an undisclosed upfront payment and additional payments for certain clinical and regulatory milestones.

Vaccine Co. is developing a vaccine against Epstein-Barr virus. Lilly agreed to pay up to $1.55 billion in cash including an undisclosed upfront payment and potential clinical and commercial milestone payments.

The context
Lilly has had infectious-disease products in the past, including one of the original polio vaccines and Covid-19 antibodies, but the segment hasn’t been a key area of focus at the company for a while. If the new acquisitions pan out, vaccines could become a core focus joining diabetes, obesity, cancer, immunology and neurodegeneration.

Lilly is approaching dealmaking from a position of strength, flush with cash from its successful GLP-1 drugs, including Zepbound for weight loss and Mounjaro for diabetes. It recently agreed to several acquisitions of companies developing drugs for cancer, sleep disorders and autoimmune diseases, each valued at less than $10 billion.

Curevo’s shingles vaccine has completed a midstage clinical trial and is likely a few years away from becoming a commercial product, assuming it clears a larger, late-stage study and regulatory approval, Skovronsky said. Shingles vaccines are recommended for U.S. adults ages 50 and older.

LimmaTech’s staph vaccine, if successful in testing, could be given to patients before surgeries to ward off staph infections. There is no licensed vaccine for staph aureus.

The vaccine that Vaccine Co. is developing could protect against mononucleosis and potentially reduce long-term risk of multiple sclerosis, Skovronsky said. There is no licensed vaccine against Epstein-Barr virus.

“The burden of infectious disease around the world continues to be high and in many cases growing,” Skovronsky said. “And we think we have the scientific tools now to address them.”

FT : ByteDance offers AI team special stock to fend off poaching

ByteDance offers AI team special stock to fend off poaching
TikTok owner issues shares tied to AI business unit as China’s tech talent war heats up

ByteDance is offering special stock to employees of its AI lab to fend off poaching from rivals as China’s tech talent war heats up.

The Beijing-based owner of TikTok is offering low-priced stock options linked to its Seed AI division to employees of the unit, according to four people with knowledge of the incentive. It is the first time ByteDance has issued shares tied to a specific business unit.

The structure gives staff exposure to Seed’s growth without dilution from ByteDance’s other business lines. The move is meant to keep staff at the company after rivals including Tencent began poaching members of its top research team.

Like in Silicon Valley, a fierce talent war is under way in China, particularly for engineers specialising in infrastructure and data labelling, areas viewed as critical to improving AI model efficiency amid constrained computing resources.

ByteDance, which aggressively recruited for Seed after establishing the lab in 2023, is widely regarded as having one of the highest concentrations of elite AI researchers in China. The company made early and large bets on AI infrastructure, becoming Nvidia’s largest Chinese customer.

Tencent conceded late last year that it had fallen behind competitors in the development of large language models and has intensified its hiring push in recent months, including targeting ByteDance staff.

Recent high-profile departures include Xiao Xuefeng, a senior member of Seed’s visual AI platform, and Zhang Chi, an infrastructure specialist, who both left for Tencent. The recruitment drive has been led by Yao Shunyu, a prominent AI researcher who joined Tencent from OpenAI last year.

To stem the tide, ByteDance offered Seed employees around the world the option to buy so-called Doubao stock at $13 a piece this month, according to the people with knowledge of the incentive.

Their value has risen almost 30 per cent since the end of last year, when the units were priced at about $10, the people added, reflecting faster commercialisation of ByteDance’s LLMs in the cloud business and better model performance. The valuation is also low compared with those of rival AI labs in China, implying significant potential gains for employees.

The compensation method is controversial because it can create internal division, discourage collaboration and make it harder for talent to move internally.

While ByteDance has built one of China’s largest AI research operations, several insiders said the organisation had become overly bureaucratic, with responsibilities fragmented across teams. Seed has about 2,000 employees, including core researchers, infrastructure engineers, a data labelling team and translators.

Tencent’s AI operation, by contrast, is smaller and offers researchers greater scope over projects and decision making, said the insiders. The company has sought to attract Seed employees with promises of more lucrative compensation packages and broader managerial responsibilities.

DeepSeek is also contending with fierce talent competition. The Hangzhou-based lab is fundraising for its first round with investors, in part to retain top researchers, the FT previously reported.

DeepSeek gained recognition last year for its powerful R1 model built with limited chip resources, but the breakthrough has made it vulnerable to deep-pocketed rivals. ByteDance poached several members of its infrastructure team last year, according to a person with knowledge of the hires.

ByteDance, DeepSeek and Tencent did not respond to requests for comment.

Le Figaro : Face au cancer et aux maladies neurodégénératives, Nanobiotix mise s

Face au cancer et aux maladies neurodégénératives, Nanobiotix mise sur ses prometteuses nanoparticules

DÉCRYPTAGE - La biotech française vient de lever 85 millions d’euros afin d’accélérer le développement de nouveaux médicaments, qui intéressent déjà de nombreux laboratoires pharmaceutiques.

Nanobiotix lève des fonds pour accélérer le développement de nouveaux médicaments. Créé il y a plus de vingt ans par le physicien Laurent Levy, Nanobiotix est en passe de révolutionner le traitement du cancer par radiothérapie. Cette biotech, dont la spécificité est de créer des nanoparticules destinées au corps humain, amorce désormais le développement de nouvelles thérapies innovantes au-delà du champ de la cancérologie, dans le traitement d’Alzheimer, par exemple. Elle vient pour ce faire de lever 85 millions d’euros, à Paris et à New York, où elle est doublement cotée. « Nous ne voulions pas attendre que notre premier produit soit sur le marché pour pouvoir accélérer le développement des autres », explique Laurent Levy, dont la société est désormais valorisée 1,7 milliard d’euros.

Le produit phare de Nanobiotix est un médicament composé de nanoparticules qui boostent les effets de la radiothérapie. « Il a été conçu de telle sorte qu’il absorbe l’énergie de la radiothérapie pour en accroître les effets, explique le PDG fondateur. C’est un amplificateur local. L’efficacité du traitement s’en trouve accrue, sans accroissement des effets secondaires » dans les tissus sains. Une fois injectées, les nanoparticules restent pour toujours dans la tumeur, mais ne s’activent que lorsque celle-ci est irradiée.

Des essais pour le cancer du poumon
C’est dans le traitement du cancer de la tête et du cou que le développement du médicament de Nanobiotix est le plus avancé. Une étude de phase 3 (la phase finale de développement d’un médicament) est en cours dans cette indication, menée par le laboratoire américain Johnson & Johnson, avec qui Nanobiotix a signé un accord de licence en 2023. Ses résultats finaux devraient être publiés au premier semestre 2027, pour une commercialisation probable en 2028. Une étude de phase 2 est en cours dans le cancer du poumon.

Les potentielles applications de ce médicament vont au-delà de ces deux types de cancer. « 60 % des cancers se traitent actuellement par radiothérapie, souligne Laurent Levy. C’est le cas de 80 % des cancers du sein . Sur le plan financier, notre médicament a le potentiel de générer des revenus supérieurs à 5 milliards de dollars annuels. »

En vertu du contrat signé avec Johnson & Johnson, Nanobiotix devrait percevoir 200 millions d’euros ces deux ou trois prochaines années. Une fois le médicament commercialisé, la biotech touchera des royalties de 10 % à 20 % sur les ventes. Nanobiotix disposait de suffisamment de trésorerie pour tenir jusqu’à 2028. Les 85 millions d’euros levés lui permettent d’étendre ce financement jusqu’en 2029 et, surtout, de financer le développement de ses traitements en phase précoce.

Éviter les effets de mode
Ainsi du « nanoprimer », qui ne cherche pas à soigner une maladie en particulier mais à maximiser l’efficacité d’autres médicaments. « L’industrie pharmaceutique produit des traitements de plus en plus compliqués - des virus oncolytiques destinés à détruire les tumeurs, des thérapies cellulaires… - que le foie du patient va tenter d’éliminer, explique Laurent Levy. Les laboratoires tentent de rendre ces produits le plus invisibles pour le foie, mais, ce faisant, font des compromis quant à l’efficacité de leur traitement. »

La réponse de Nanobiotix consiste à leurrer le foie en le saturant, de telle sorte que le second médicament injecté, dont la vocation est thérapeutique, puisse s’échapper et trouver sa cible. « C’est un produit pour des dizaines et des dizaines d’applications ou de combinaisons potentielles », souligne Laurent Lévy. De nombreux biotechs et laboratoires pharmaceutiques ont déjà manifesté leur intérêt pour ce produit, que Nanobiotix développe depuis cinq ans.

Autre piste de recherche : les maladies neurodégénératives. Fidèle à sa formation de physicien, Laurent Levy considère le cerveau comme un circuit électrique plutôt que comme un organe biologique. « Dans le cas de la maladie d’Alzheimer ou de Parkinson, il y a toujours un problème de communication entre les neurones, explique-t-il. Celle-ci peut-être trop lente, trop rapide ou désynchronisée. Nous développons dans ce domaine des particules qui modifient la conduction de l’électricité dans le cerveau. »

Dans tous les cas, Nanobiotix s’attache à sortir des sentiers battus. « Quand des centaines de laboratoires et de biotechs travaillent sur les mêmes produits et essaient d’arriver les premiers, nous avons décidé de faire quelque chose de complètement différent, à partir de la physique, explique le PDG. Plutôt que de cibler une maladie ou un récepteur en particulier, nous créons de nouvelles classes de médicaments. Nos produits ont des modes d’action génériques, qui peuvent adresser n’importe quel type de patients. » Un chemin plus long, mais plus fructueux s’il aboutit.

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 26th of May 2026 V2(+)

>>> Up
* Air France-KLM Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley
* Aryzta Raised to Buy at Berenberg; PT 75 Swiss francs vs 65 CHF
* Autoliv Raised to Buy at Handelsbanken; PT $145 (+)
* Bodycote PT Raised to 1,000 pence from 850 pence at Peel Hunt (+)
* British Land Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 465 pence
* Carmila Raised to Buy at Jefferies; PT 20 euros
* Iberdrola Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 22.60 euros
* Kingfisher Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley (+)
* Kingfisher Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley (+)
* Outokumpu Raised to Outperform at Oddo BHF; PT 7.60 euros
* QinetiQ Raised to Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 615 pence
* Sparebanken Ost Raised to Hold at Pareto Securities (+)
* Sparebanken Ost Raised to Hold at Pareto Securities (+)
* VGP Raised to Buy at Jefferies; PT 96 euros
* Zurich PT Raised from 656 CHF 711 CHF

>>> Down
* Elior Cut to Neutral at Citi; PT 2.40 euros
* Ence Cut to Neutral at Grupo Santander; PT 2.87 euros (+)
* Frontline PLC Cut to Hold at Pareto Securities; PT $40
* Grand City Properties Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT 9.90 euros
* Hexagon Cut to Hold at Handelsbanken; PT 94.50 kronor (+)
* Lufthansa Cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley; PT 6.20 euros
* Taylor Wimpey Cut to Sell at Goldman; PT 75 pence
* Wacker Chemie Cut to Neutral at UBS; PT 104 euros

>>> Initiation
* Circle Internet Rated New Sector Weight at KeyBanc
* GE Vernova Rated New Add at Huatai Research; PT $1,174
* Pershing Square USA Rated New Market Perform at KBW; PT $42
* Pershing Square Inc. Rated New Neutral at UBS; PT $39
* Pershing Square Inc. Rated New Sector Perform at RBC; PT $40
* Science Group Rated New Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 755 pence
* Ypsomed Rated New Underperform at Jefferies; PT 280 Swiss francs

>>> Call
* Air France Raised, Lufthansa Cut at Morgan Stanley, IAG Top Pick
* Aryzta Nearing a Turning Point, Upgraded to Buy at Berenberg
* Outokumpu Raised, Oddo BHF More Positive on Stainless Steel
* Attractive Entry Point in European Listed Real Estate: Jefferies

>>> LA LETTRE — 26/05/26 - Francais & English

LA LETTRE — 26/05/26 - 📩 Ask me for the full article on any item.

🇫🇷 FRANÇAIS

POLITIQUE

PS — Le think-tank d’Olivier Faure prend forme. Faure prépare le lancement d’un laboratoire d’idées rattaché au PS, confié à Floran Vadillo et Gaétan Gorce (objectifs/forme), puis à Julie Martinez et Gaston Laval (conseil scientifique, annonce le 8 juin). Nom provisoire retenu : “Noûs”. Objectif assumé : concurrencer LFI en agrégeant sociologues, philosophes et économistes proches de la social-démocratie. Liens étroits avec l’Institut Rousseau de Nicolas Dufrêne. — D. Bernard

Place Beauvau — Laurent Nuñez tranche pour le “36”. Le ministre de l’Intérieur a transmis à l’Élysée le nom de Virginie Lahaye (actuelle sous-directrice affaires cyber et financières) pour diriger la PJ parisienne. Elle serait la 2ᵉ femme à ce poste après Martine Monteil. Profil “décloisonnement”, proche du dispositif Force d’investigation conjointe voulu par Nuñez. Nomination à entériner en conseil des ministres. — O. Bonnaud

Paris — La majorité Grégoire se partage les SEM. Répartition votée le 20 mai. Continuité globale : Belliard garde la RIVP (≈619 M€ CA, 65 000 logements), les communistes conservent Elogie-Siemp, Lejoindre reste à P&Ma, Coumet à la Semapa. Lucie Castets prend l’Accor Arena ; Ariel Weil bien placé pour la tour Eiffel (SETE, 106 M€ CA, modèle fragile). — L. Cabanes

Parlement européen — Le RN s’invite sur l’accélérateur industriel Séjourné. L’eurodéputée RN Mathilde Androuët désignée rapporteure pour avis (commission ENVI) sur l’Industrial Accelerator Act. Elle veut durcir les critères du “Made in Europe”. Vote en plénière de décembre. — LL

ENTREPRISES

Énergie — Le bâtiment rejette l’interdiction du gaz dans le neuf. Le CSCEE a rejeté (avis consultatif) la mesure phare du plan d’électrification (plus de gaz dans le neuf à compter de 2030 ; décret visant le 1ᵉʳ janvier 2027). Surtransposition perçue de la directive 2024. Macron reçoit ce mardi 26 mai l’“équipe de France de l’électricité”. — S. Prigent

MÉDIAS

Mediawan fusionne quatre boîtes de production. Capton regroupe Réservoir, Maximal, Troisième Œil et Hide Park dans Mediawan France Unscripted (ex-Mediawan Prod HOT). Toile de fond : litiges sur l’emploi d’intermittents (doubles CDDU), courrier Drieets, plaintes en justice. La fusion entraînerait la dissolution des CSE et mandats syndicaux existants. — C. Boullay

🇬🇧 ENGLISH

POLITICS

PS — Faure finalizes Socialist think-tank. Faure is launching a PS-linked think-tank, run by Vadillo/Gorce then Martinez/Laval (scientific board unveiled June 8). Provisional name: “Noûs”. Aim: counter LFI by aggregating left-leaning academics. Close ties to Dufrêne’s Institut Rousseau.

Police — Nuñez picks Lahaye for Paris PJ “36”. Interior Minister forwarded Virginie Lahaye’s name to the Élysée to head the Paris judicial police — would be 2nd woman in the role. Cabinet approval pending.

Paris — Grégoire majority divvies up city-owned firms (SEM). May 20 vote; broad continuity. Belliard keeps RIVP (≈€619M rev., 65k homes); communists keep Elogie-Siemp; Castets takes Accor Arena; Weil favored for Eiffel Tower (SETE, €106M, fragile model).

EU Parliament — RN grabs influence on Séjourné’s Industrial Accelerator Act. RN MEP Androuët named ENVI opinion rapporteur; pushing stricter “Made in Europe” criteria. December plenary vote.

CORPORATES

Energy — Builders reject gas ban in new buildings. CSCEE rejected (advisory) the electrification plan’s flagship measure (no gas in new builds from 2030; decree targeting Jan 1, 2027). Seen as over-transposition of 2024 EU directive. Macron hosts the “Team France electricity” today.

MEDIA

Mediawan merges four production companies. Capton consolidates Réservoir, Maximal, Troisième Œil, Hide Park into Mediawan France Unscripted. Backdrop: labor disputes over freelance (“intermittent”) double-contracts, regulator warning, lawsuits. Merger would dissolve existing works councils and union mandates.

WSJ : Mistral AI Takes Aim at Legal Sector Through Expanded Harvey AI Partnershi

Mistral AI Takes Aim at Legal Sector Through Expanded Harvey AI Partnership
Mistral will gain access to more than 1,500 customers that use Harvey across over 60 countries

Mistral AI is bringing its models to the legal sector under a partnership with the startup Harvey AI, taking aim at a lucrative industry where rivals like Anthropic are expanding aggressively.

The French artificial-intelligence company will feature on a list of models that San Francisco-based Harvey offers on its platform to help law firms and in-house legal teams streamline work in areas like contract analysis, due diligence, compliance and litigation. Mistral models will initially be available to a few customers based in the European Union ahead of a wider rollout.

Lawyers handle troves of text and data, making the legal industry fertile ground for large language models that can help sift through documents. The potential to automate tasks and give lawyers extra time to take on more cases is an incentive to pay top-tier prices for AI tools.

Mistral will gain access to more than 1,500 customers that use Harvey across over 60 countries, putting it on steadier footing as it jockeys for position in an industry where Anthropic has already made strides: The Claude maker recently added more legal tools known as plug-ins that paying customers can use through its Cowork assistant.

Mistral’s partnership with Harvey isn’t new—the companies announced a collaboration in May 2024 to work out how to support clients. In a joint interview, Mistral Chief Revenue Officer Marjorie Janiewicz and Harvey Chief Operating Officer Katie Burke said the two startups dipped their toes in the water at the time and were jumping in now that Mistral models had evolved.

“The difference here was before we were thinking about it as a pilot,” Burke said. “Now, this is a permanent partnership that we’ll make publicly available to Harvey customers.”

For Mistral, the move represents an opportunity to delve into a niche and highly technical arena where users expect increasingly capable models that understand jurisdictional nuances and comply with data-privacy requirements.

Janiewicz said Mistral had set its sights on financial services and other industries with strong data-protection needs since the early days of the startup, and that it made perfect sense to focus on legal as it also ticks the box around the need for security. Mistral could explore further partnerships to expand elsewhere, she added.

“You should definitely expect us to become more and more present in any industry that, as I mentioned, would really value control of the data and also customization,” Janiewicz said.

For Harvey, the partnership means it can offer more choice to clients by adding Mistral to its repertoire of models that includes Anthropic, ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Alphabet’s Google. Burke said over half of Harvey’s customers were outside the U.S. and it was critical for the platform to provide a model that understands a global context and works across multiple languages.

AI tools are improving at a dizzying pace, raising fears that the technology could wipe out jobs across legal, accounting and other industries where software is essential. Earlier this year, Anthropic’s release of new capabilities to automate processes like contract reviews and legal briefings triggered a selloff in software-as-a-service stocks.

>>> What to look at today - 26th of Mayl 2026

Stocks trimmed gains and crude oil advanced after US strikes on sites in Iran curbed optimism over a potential deal to end the war. S&P 500 futures rose 0.6%, though gains were more modest than Monday, when US markets were shut. Asian shares were up 0.5%, off session highs, as American forces hit missile launch sites in Iran and boats trying to place mines, the US Central Command said. Authorities described the attacks as defensive in nature. European shares were also set to drop. Weighing on risk appetite was a rebound in oil prices after the strikes clouded the outlook for an interim deal to reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. Brent rose almost 2% to $98 a barrel, bouncing back from Monday’s slump of more than 7%, when trading volumes were thin with holidays in London and New York. The dollar strengthened against all of its Group-of-10 peers, while gold erased earlier gains to fall 0.6% to about $4,545 an ounce. Treasuries rallied across the curve in a catch-up move as cash trading resumed after a break.  Traders remained cautiously optimistic as the back-and-forth over a potential Middle East deal continued to drive swings across markets, with global stocks hitting a record Monday on bets the worst of the energy shock may be over. Elevated oil prices and inflation concerns have meanwhile fueled speculation the Federal Reserve may keep interest rates higher for longer. Earlier, US President Donald Trump said that negotiations with Iran over an interim deal to extend their ceasefire and reopen the strait were “proceeding nicely.” Pakistan’s military chief, Asim Munir, the main interlocutor between the warring sides, told China an agreement was “close to being reached.” The ongoing negotiations with Iran will take a few days, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. Key sticking points remain unresolved, however, including the future of Iran’s nuclear program. Its Tasnim news agency reported the draft agreement could still collapse because of US objections to several provisions, including Tehran’s demand that frozen assets be released. In other geopolitical news, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged Rubio to evacuate American citizens and diplomats from Kyiv ahead of what Moscow said would be an escalation of strikes on the Ukrainian capital, according to a statement from Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Monday. Meanwhile, shares in Hong Kong fluctuated as they returned from their holiday.  That’s after Chinese investors rushed to find alternative ways to buy and sell overseas equities after Beijing launched its most forceful crackdown on illicit cross-border stock trading to stem capital outflows.

Nikkei -0.15% Hang Seng +0.27% CSI +0.14% Shanghai -0.57% Shenzen -0.92%

Eur$ 1.1630 CNH 6.7883 CNY 6.7881 JPY 159 GBP 1.3479 CHF 0.7835 RUB 71.6169 TRY 45.9031 WTI$ 92.03 -4.73% Gold 4,534 -0.85% BTC 76,866 -0.45% ETH 2,101.50 -0.62%

S&P +0.60% Nasdaq +0.81% EuroStoxx -0.32% FTSE +0.18% Dax -0.39% SMI +0.88%

Macro :
- Israel Will Intensify Lebanon Strikes Amid US-Iran Deal Talks
- Ukraine Rejects Easing Pressure on Belarus Potash: Sybiha (NTR US, MOS US, SDF GY, BHP LN, YARA NO)

Keep an eye on :
- AAPL US : Apple has an innovation gap. Will its new CEO fill it? - FT
- AZN LN : AstraZeneca CEO Says Could Invest Over $12b in Japan: Nikkei
- BST IM : Banca CF+ Reiterates It Doesn’t Intend to Delist Banca Sistema
- COXG SM : Cox Group Took 20% Bridge Loan for Mexico Deal
- DNR IM : De Nora to Buy BW Water at Enterprise Value of $61.5M to $66.5M
- ENI IM : Eni Looks to Speed Up $4 Billion Oil Expansion in Ivory Coast
- EQNR NO : Equinor Ordered to Reduce Alarm Rate for Sverdrup Control Room
- RACE IM : Ferrari launches first EV with Jony Ive’s ‘polarising’ design - FT --> -5% pre market
- IBE SM : Cox Group Took 54% Bridge Loan for Deal to Buy Iberdrola Mexico
- IDR SM : *INDRA MULLS NAMING RENAULT'S RECASENS AS NEW CEO: CONFIDENCIAL
- SDF GY : Ukraine Rejects Easing Pressure on Belarus Potash: Sybiha
- LEHN SW : Lem FY Sales Meet Estimates
- Noja Power (Private) : Goldman Sachs plays long game for NOJA Power, $1b deal in works
- NDX1 GY : Top European wind turbine maker calls ‘non-western’ rivals a security threat - FT
- NDX1 GY : Nordex Gets 110 MW Wind Turbine Order From Eksim Enerji
- SPOT US : Spotify chief defends AI-generated music - FT Article Link
- WOR AU : Worley Gets Services Contract From American Electric Power

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 26th of May 2026

>>> Up
* Air France-KLM Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley
* Aryzta Raised to Buy at Berenberg; PT 75 Swiss francs vs 65 CHF
* British Land Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 465 pence
* Carmila Raised to Buy at Jefferies; PT 20 euros
* Iberdrola Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 22.60 euros
* Outokumpu Raised to Outperform at Oddo BHF; PT 7.60 euros
* QinetiQ Raised to Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 615 pence
* VGP Raised to Buy at Jefferies; PT 96 euros
* Zurich PT Raised from 656 CHF 711 CHF

>>> Down
* Elior Cut to Neutral at Citi; PT 2.40 euros
* Frontline PLC Cut to Hold at Pareto Securities; PT $40
* Grand City Properties Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT 9.90 euros
* Lufthansa Cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley; PT 6.20 euros
* Taylor Wimpey Cut to Sell at Goldman; PT 75 pence
* Wacker Chemie Cut to Neutral at UBS; PT 104 euros

>>> Initiation
* Circle Internet Rated New Sector Weight at KeyBanc
* GE Vernova Rated New Add at Huatai Research; PT $1,174
* Pershing Square USA Rated New Market Perform at KBW; PT $42
* Pershing Square Inc. Rated New Neutral at UBS; PT $39
* Pershing Square Inc. Rated New Sector Perform at RBC; PT $40
* Science Group Rated New Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 755 pence
* Ypsomed Rated New Underperform at Jefferies; PT 280 Swiss francs

>>> Call
* Air France Raised, Lufthansa Cut at Morgan Stanley, IAG Top Pick
* Aryzta Nearing a Turning Point, Upgraded to Buy at Berenberg
* Outokumpu Raised, Oddo BHF More Positive on Stainless Steel
* Attractive Entry Point in European Listed Real Estate: Jefferies

>>> Stoxx 600 Pre-Market Indications

  • Sandoz Group (D8Y TH) +3.8%
  • Fresnillo (FNL TH) +2.4%
  • TP (RCF TH) +1.2%
  • Shell (R6C0 TH) -1.3%
  • Stellantis (8TI TH) -1.4%
  • Enel (ENL TH) -1.7%
  • BP (BPE5 TH) -2.1%
  • Abivax (2X1 TH) -3.2%
  • Standard Chartered (STD TH) -3.3%
  • Equinor (DNQ TH) -4.5%
    • Equinor Ordered to Reduce Alarm Rate for Sverdrup Control Room
  • Var Energi (J4V TH) -4.9%
  • Aker BP (ARC TH) -5%
  • Ferrari (2FE TH) -7.4%
    • Ferrari Rolls Out Five-Seat Fully Electric Car in Brand First