Gapping down
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- IRDM -3.8%, ABT -3.6%, UAL -3.2%, SNV -1.2%, LMT -1.1%, STLD -0.9%, JNJ -0.5%, PM -0.5%, ELS -0.4%, PG -0.4%, SI -0.3%, KEY -0.3%,
M&A news:
- CNI -8.9% (made a superior proposal to combine with Kansas City Southern (KSU) in a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $33.7 billion, or $325/share)
Other news:
- FUTU -7.8% (commences offering of 9.5 mln ADSs)
- ZLAB -5.7% (commences public offering of $750.0 mln ADS)
- AAL -1.9% (to reduce flights to certain destinations in South America amid reduced demand related to COVID-19, according to Reuters)
- ALV -1.9% (and Mersen announced today a joint collaboration to develop devices that will help make electric vehicles safer)
- VALE -1.3% (signed an Investment Agreement with Mitsui & Co for the acquisition by Vale of the totality of Mitsui´s interest of the Moatize coal mine)
- JG -0.9% (entered into a partnership agreement with Hycan Intelligent Technology)
- RIO -0.9% (releases first quarter production results)
- TSLA -0.4% (CEO Elon Musk responds to Texas crash "Data logs recovered so far show Autopilot was not enabled & this car did not purchase FSD)
- GILD -0.3% (NCNA files patent infringement suit against GILD),
Analyst comments:
- CLNE -4.2% (downgraded to Underperform from Mkt Perform at Raymond James)
- VLDR -2.2% (initiated with an Underperform at BofA )
- CAR -2.1% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA)
- FCEL -2% (initiated with an Underweight at Wells Fargo)
- GLT -1.9% ( downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO)
- VNE -1.9% (initiated with an Underperform at BofA)
- NKE -1.7% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citi)
- EOG -1% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman),
Gapping up
In reaction to earnings/guidance:
- AN +3.5%, SI +3.1%, IBM +3%, EDU +3%, DOV +2.9%, DOV +2.8%, STLD +2.6%, CCK +2.5%, MAN +1.7%, TRV +1.6%, HXL +1.4%, WTFC +1.3%, GMAB +1.3% (reports Q1 net sales of DARZALEX totaled $1.365 bln (receives royalties on worldwide net sales from JNJ's Janssen) SGRY +1.3%, FNB +0.5%,
M&A news:
- KSU +18.2% (Canadian National (CNI) announced that it has made a superior proposal to combine with Kansas City Southern (KSU) in a cash-and-stock transaction valued at $33.7 billion, or $325/share)
Other news:
- SNDX +5.8% (announces updated data from Phase 1 dose escalation portion of Phase 1/2 AUGMENT-101 trial of SNDX-5613)
- JCOM +4% (to separate into two publicly traded companies)
- BAOS +4% (Hires project lead and purchases 1,000 mining machines to start blockchain and cryptocurrency business)
- PEBO +2.9% (increases quarterly cash dividend to $0.36 per common share from $0.35 per share)
- AVNW +2.9% (signs multi-million dollar 5G network agreement with Africell)
- BIIB +2.1% (And Eisai (ESALY) report 18-month, pre-specified analysis showing consistent reduction in clinical outcome measures from a Lecanemab Phase 2b clinical trial in early Alzheimer's disease was published)
- GNW +1.9% (files registration statement for IPO),
- CANG +1.5% (enters agreement with Zhengzhou Nissan Auto Sales Service Co. to develop a new retail model for automotive transactions),
- RNLX +1.1% (announces the findings of a new study in which the commercially available KidneyIntelX test accurately predicted progression of diabetic kidney disease in a multinational cohort from the CANagliflozin CardioVAScular Assessment Study 1 with early-stage DKD)
- GNK +0.8% (outlines strategy for dividend payouts, growth and deleveraging)
- AZN +0.7% (and Daiichi Sankyo (DSNKY) UK report that NICE recommended Enhertu for use within the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) as an option for treating HER2 positive unresectable or metastatic breast cancer),
Analyst comments:
- FSR +6.5% (initiated with a Buy at BofA), ORMP +3% (initiated with a Buy at Canaccord), TDUP +2.8% (initiated with an Outperform at William Blair), ZH +2.5% (initiated with a Buy at Goldman), BE +2.2% (initiated with an Overweight at Wells Fargo), RXT +0.6% (initiated with an Outperform at Raymond James),
Early premarket gappers
- Gapping up:
- AVNW +5.9%, EDU +4.1%, JCOM +4%, IBM +3.2%, PEBO +2.9%, CCK +2.5%, BIIB +2.1%, GNW +1.9%, CANG +1.5%, WTFC +1.3%, GNK +0.8%,
- Gapping down:
- FUTU -8%, ZLAB -5.7%, TRQ -2.4%, AAL -2%, UAL -1.8%, VALE -1.7%, TSLA -1.2%, STLD -0.9%,
Global Blue accused by rival of breaking competition law
Refundit claims Swiss company uses ‘predatory’ merchant commission with lack of transparency for customers
Swiss payments company Global Blue is facing a formal antitrust complaint before EU regulators over allegations that it is breaking competition law by signing exclusive contracts with merchants aimed at excluding rivals.
Rival Refundit has accused Global Blue of sharing its commission with high-end retailers with the aim of signing deals that exclude rivals, as well as a lack of transparency over the fees it charges customers.
Global Blue, which offers tax refunds for travellers on luxury goods, went public last year through a special acquisition vehicle. Its backers include US private equity group Silver Lake.
Refundit alleges the commissions Global Blue charges are “excessive, unfair and opaque” and that they are designed to maintain a dominant position in the market.
“Global Blue’s merchant commission and free services offered to key merchants are predatory and its pricing strategy aims at deterring new entrants and disciplining the market, strengthening even further the economies of scale benefiting the dominant player, Global Blue,” said the complaint, filed with the EU’s competition unit in Brussels late on Monday.
Refundit, which was co-founded by Israeli serial entrepreneur Uri Levine, claims that Global Blue’s success is partly because it has a dominant position in the market. In its complaint, it has asked the European Commission to intervene and bring Global Blue’s alleged anti-competitive conduct to an end.
Levine, who also founded traffic and navigation app Waze, told the Financial Times the current market dynamics meant “everyone loses and there’s one winner” and that his company wanted a “shift” so that “everyone wins and there might be one loser”.
He claimed: “Global Blue built the business in a way that’s good for them. It approached high-end retailers and signed exclusivity agreements for the long term. The company is charging tourists huge fees that are unknown for the traveller,” Levine added. “People are happy to get some money back but not knowing that money has disappeared in a very [opaque] way.”
In its complaint, Refundit said it wants the EU to impose a transparency obligation over the commission Global Blue charges travellers. Refundit also wants regulators in Brussels to prohibit Global Blue from sharing commission with merchants.
Global Blue said: “We are surprised to learn that Refundit is submitting a complaint against Global Blue before the EU. Global Blue is one of many VAT refund operators in a highly competitive market. Global Blue offers a transparent and competitive service to all its stakeholders, including consumers and merchants. Global Blue is committed to compliance with all applicable laws and regulations and has in place a comprehensive competition law compliance policy”.
The European Commission declined to comment.
China’s Meituan Amasses $10 Billion War Chest for Drones and Driverless Cars
Company also unveils new generation of self-driving delivery cars it says are smarter, safer than previous versions
China’s Meituan is raising nearly $10 billion from investors, hoping it will be able to gain an edge on its e-commerce rivals by spending heavily on technology allowing it to deliver goods using drones and self-driving cars.
Meituan is one of China’s most valuable tech companies. Its app lets users order various real-world services including meals and groceries, as well as organizing bookings for hotels, flights, taxis and restaurants.
The Hong Kong-listed company is raising net proceeds of about $7 billion by issuing stock and a further $2.97 billion by selling convertible bonds, it said Tuesday.
The huge capital-raising is considerably bigger than the $4.2 billion Meituan raised in its 2018 initial public offering and suggests there is still a healthy appetite among investors for stock in Chinese technology companies, even though shares in Meituan and many peers have pulled back recently.
Earlier this month, Prosus NV raised $14.6 billion by selling down a small part of its stake in Tencent Holdings Ltd. , the internet and videogaming giant.
Meituan said it plans to use some of the net proceeds on projects such as researching and developing autonomous delivery vehicles, drone deliveries and other cutting-edge technology.
In a separate statement Monday, the company unveiled a new generation of self-driving delivery cars that it said were smarter and safer than previous versions, with a longer battery life and capable of carrying heavier loads. Meituan says it has been working on this technology for five years and began making deliveries in a district of Beijing last year. It plans to roll out the service to other Chinese cities within three years.
The company raised about $6.6 billion by selling shares to institutional investors. Tencent, a major shareholder in Meituan, has pledged to buy $400 million of stock subject to approval from independent shareholders. After the share sales, Tencent and its associates will own about 17.2% of Meituan.
Meituan will also issue two sets of zero-coupon convertible bonds with a combined face value of $2.98 billion, due in 2027 and 2028.
Meituan set the offer price at 273.80 Hong Kong dollars a share, the equivalent of $35.27 and representing a discount of 5.3% compared to Monday’s closing price. That was close to the upper end of an indicative price range of HK$265 to HK$274, as shown by a term sheet on Monday.
Meituan’s shares rose 1.2% to HK$292.60 a share in early trading on Tuesday.
Meituan had an operating loss of 2.9 billion yuan, equivalent to $445 million, in the fourth quarter, compared with an operating profit of 1.4 billion yuan a year ago. While revenue for the quarter rose nearly 35% to 37.9 billion yuan year on year, Meituan said it had made significant investments in new initiatives and warned investors it could continue to record operating losses in the next few quarters as it ramps up its group-buying business.
Meituan and rivals such as Pinduoduo Inc. are jostling for market share in group buying, a fast-growing form of e-commerce in China in which people join together to buy groceries in bulk at better prices.
Meituan’s stock rose to records in February. But the stock has since fallen about 36% amid a broader selloff in Chinese technology stocks that has been driven partly by concerns about a tougher regulatory environment.
>>> Up
* Aegon Raised to Hold at SocGen; PT 4.10 euros
* Aegon Raised to Hold at SocGen; PT 4.10 euros
* AstraZeneca Raised to Buy at SEB Equities; PT 8,336.71 pence
* ElringKlinger Raised to Neutral at Oddo BHF; PT 12 euros (+)
* IntegraFin Raised to Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 620 pence (+)
* LondonMetric Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan; PT 250 pence
* Ryanair Raised to Hold at Peel Hunt; PT 16.30 euros
* Sika’s Raised Guidance is a ‘Strong Signal,’ Baader Helvea Says
* VGP NV Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan; PT 170 euros
>>> Down
>>> Down
* AAK Cut to Underweight at Barclays; PT 171 kronor (+)
* BASF Cut to Add at Baader Helvea; PT 81 euros (+)
* Hexagon Cut to Sell at Handelsbanken; PT 795 kronor
* Schaeffler Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 9 euros
>>> Initiation
* Schaeffler Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 9 euros
>>> Initiation
* Azimut Rated New Equal-Weight at Barclays; PT 22.10 euros
* Banca Generali Rated New Overweight at Barclays; PT 41 euros
* Banca Ifis Rated New Market Perform at KBW; PT 12.40 euros
* BE Semiconductor Rated New Buy at Needham; PT 90 euros
* FinecoBank Rated New Equal-Weight at Barclays; PT 15.30 euros
* Galapagos Rated New Buy at Deutsche Bank; PT 110 euros
* Genmab Rated New Buy at Deutsche Bank; PT 2,750 kroner
* Ipsen Rated New Hold at Deutsche Bank; PT 80 euros
* Italian Asset Gatherers Initiated with Positive Stance: Barclays (+)
* Kendrion Rated New Corporate at Edison Investment Research
* Kendrion Rated New Corporate at Edison Investment Research
* Mediolanum Rated New Overweight at Barclays; PT 10 euros
* Recordati Rated New Hold at Deutsche Bank; PT 45 euros
* Scandic Re-Initiated Hold at Handelsbanken; PT 40 kronor
* Sino Rated New Buy at M.M. Warburg; PT 65 euros (+)
* Sobi Rated New Hold at Deutsche Bank; PT 130 kronor (+)
* SOL Rated New Buy at Tradition; PT 28.80 euros
* Sound Energy Rated New Buy at SP Angel; PT 6.50 pence
>>> Call
>>> Call
* AAK Faces Drag From Declining Birth Rates, Cut at Barclays (+)
* Atos Shares May Drop Following 1Q Revenue Miss: Morgan Stanley
* Danone 1Q ‘Uninteresting,’ With Nothing New on CEO Front: RBC (+)
* Elementis Bid Report Shows Shares ‘Have Been Cheap’: Jefferies (+)
* Grifols Initiated at Hold on Long-Term Questions: Deutsche Bank (+)
* Hexagon Cut, Valuation Outside of ‘Comfort Zone’: Handelsbanken (+)
* Philips Earnings Momentum is Fading, Cut to Hold: Commerzbank
* Ryanair Upgraded to Hold at Peel Hunt, But Risks Still Seen
* Sika’s Raised Guidance is a ‘Strong Signal,’ Baader Helvea Says
* Sika’s Raised Guidance is a ‘Strong Signal,’ Baader Helvea Says
* Ten Entertainment Reopening ‘Likely to be Stronger’: Berenberg (+)
* Traton’s Pre-Release Shows Significant 1Q Beat, Jefferies Says
- Smurfit Kappa (SK3 TH) +1.6%
- ProSieben (PSM TH) +1.5%
- Carnival Plc (POH1 TH) +1.4%
- Yara (IU2 TH) +1.4%
- Glaxo (GS7 TH) +1.2%
- BMW (BMW TH) +1.1%
- Nel (D7G TH) +0.8%
- BP (BPE5 TH) +0.7%
- European Energy Stocks May Move as Oil Rises a Year After Crash
-
Rio Tinto (RIO1 TH) +0.7%
- Watch Miners as Copper and Iron Ore Prices Continue to Rally
-
Mowi (PND TH) +0.5%
- Mowi Preliminary 1Q Operational Ebit About EU109m
- Worldline (WO6 TH) -0.5%
- Stellantis (8TI TH) -0.6%
- ING (INN1 TH) -0.6%
- Kering (PPX TH) -0.7%
- Zalando (ZAL TH) -0.8%
- Vestas (VWS TH) -1%
- Banco Santander (BSD2 TH) -1.2%
- Repsol (REP TH) -1.2%
DAX:
- BMW (BMW TH) +1.3%
- BMW Joins Daimler in Exceeding Estimates on Broad Sales Rebound
- BMW a Beat, Magnitude of Guidance Raise in Focus, Analysts Say
- Siemens (SIE TH) -0.3%
- Hyundai Rotem Shares Gain After Report Siemens May Buy Stake
- SAP (SAP TH) -0.4%
MDAX:
- K+S (SDF TH) +3.6%
- Statement: K+S Aktiengesellschaft: K+S receives allowance from the U.S. Justice Department for the sale of the Americas operating unit and no longer anticipates any antitrust hurdles to the closing of the sale
- ProSieben (PSM TH) +2.3%
- Encavis (CAP TH) +0.9%
- Nordex (NDX1 TH) +0.9%
SDAX:
- Traton (8TRA TH) +4.4%
- Traton Sees FY Trucks Return On Sales 5% to 7% (1)
- Deutz (DEZ TH) +3.1%
- Deutz Prelim 1Q Orders EU464.8M
- Home24 (H24 TH) +2.7%
- Jenoptik (JEN TH) +2%
- flatexDEGIRO (FTK TH) +1.6%
- Global Fashion Group (GFG TH) -0.8%
- Schaeffler (SHA TH) -0.8%
- Schaeffler Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 9 euros
- Borussia Dortmund (BVB TH) -1.6%