L'Agefi : Groupe Arnault se renforce dans Lagardère


Groupe Arnault a poursuivi ces derniers jours ses acquisitions d'actions Lagardère SCA sur le marché et devrait annoncer le franchissement à la hausse du seuil de 5% des droits de vote du groupe de médias et de distribution en début de semaine prochaine, ont indiqué deux sources à l'agence Agefi-Dow Jones.

« Groupe Arnault devrait indiquer en début de semaine prochaine avoir franchi en hausse le seuil de 5% des droits de vote de Lagardère », a indiqué une source. Les investisseurs connaitront alors la part exacte du capital de Lagardère détenue par la société d'investissement de Bernard Arnault, le PDG de LVMH. « Elle devrait être encore assez inférieure à 10% », ajoute cette source.

Un avis publié par l'Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) vendredi dernier indiquait que Groupe Arnault détenait 5,51% du capital et 4,18% des droits de vote de Lagardère au 24 septembre.

Groupe Arnault agit en soutien à Lagardère, qui subit les assauts de Vivendi et du fonds d'investissement Amber Capital. Via sa filiale Financière Agache, Groupe Arnault détient également 27,08% de Lagardère Capital, la holding personnelle d'Arnaud Lagardère.

Lagardère Capital porte la part de 7,3% détenue par Arnaud Lagardère au capital du groupe de médias et de distribution et intègre également la détention de la société Arjil Commanditée - Arco, gérant commandité de Lagardère.A la date du 24 septembre, le concert formé par Lagardère, Lagardère Capital, Arnaud Lagardère, Groupe Arnault et Financière Agache réunissaient 12,77% du capital de la société Lagardère et 15,19% de ses droits de vote, selon l'AMF.

Duel avec Vivendi
« Il y a une vraie bagarre entre Vivendi et Groupe Arnault sur le marché », a déclaré une autre source, ajoutant que les deux parties avaient acquis d'importants volumes de titres Lagardère ces derniers jours. Entre lundi et jeudi, 718.345 actions Lagardère ont en moyenne été échangées chaque jour sur le marché parisien d'Euronext, ce qui représente un volume de transaction quotidien supérieur à 60% à sa moyenne des trois derniers mois.

Vendredi, Vivendi a annoncé son intention de poursuivre ses achats d'actions Lagardère « sous réserve des conditions de marché », selon une déclaration faite à l'AMF. Le conglomérat des médias a annoncé jeudi avoir renforcé sa participation dans Lagardère. Au 30 septembre, il détenait 26,7% du capital et 20,2% des droits de vote du groupe de médias et de distribution. Amber Capital détient pour sa part environ 20% du capital de Lagardère.

Le tribunal de commerce de Paris doit rendre son jugement le 14 octobre sur le recours formé par Vivendi et son allié Amber afin d’obtenir la convocation d’une AG extraordinaire de Lagardère en vue de faire élire des représentants au conseil de surveillance.

>>>> US Gapping up

Gapping up
In reaction to earnings/guidance:

  • TWLO +9.3% (guides Q3 revs above consensus), NUS +7.7% (guides Q3 revenue well above consensus), .

Other news:

  • NNOX +26.2% (to demonstrate Nanox.ARC system live at RSNA 2020)
  • CFFN +9.9% (to join S&P SmallCap 600)
  • RNST +9.7% (to join S&P SmallCap 600)
  • MTSC +8.9% (awarded two contracts)
  • AGO +8.9% (to join S&P SmallCap 600)
  • IVZ +7.9% (Trian (Nelson Peltz) confirms 9.9% active stake in Invesco)
  • HGEN +7.8% (announced updates on its lenzilumab in COVID-19 development program, including written guidance received from the FDA following a Type B meeting to obtain feedback on plans for an EUA)
  • IBIO +6.8% (enters into a Master Services Agreement with Boston-based Safi Biosolutions, Inc. to evaluate iBio's FastPharming System for the expression of key proteins to be used in the bioprocessing of Safi blood cell therapy products)
  • TNAV +4.9% (confirms non-binding "go private" proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares for $4.32 per share)
  • OZK +3.1% (increases dividend slightly)
  • NBEV +2.3% (amends merger agreement with ARIIX)
  • PSN +1.1% (awarded $50.6 mln contract from US Air Force)
  • NTST +1.1% (provides Q3 business update)
  • BLUE +1.1% (receives EMA acceptance of MAA for elivaldogene autotemcel)

Analyst comments:

  • UBSI +1.7% (upgraded to Outperform from Mkt Perform at Keefe Bruyette)
  • IMGN +1.6% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Guggenheim)

>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers

  • Gapping up:
    • NNOX +23.8%, NBEV +12.7%, TWLO +8.6%, AGO +8.4%, RNST +7.5%, NUS +7.5%, CFFN +6.2%, PSN +5.6%, IVZ +4.1%, TNAV +4.1%, NVAX +3.2%, OZK +2.6%, ENDP +2.4%, BLUE +2.1%, NTST +1.1%, ITCI +1%, SHLL +0.8%, AZN +0.5%
  • Gapping down:
    • ADRO -79.2%, MESO -35.4%, CWST -29.5%, ARQT -6.8%, OMI -6.7%, PBR -5.9%, SGH -5.1%, NEOG -4.8%, SSD -4.5%, NIO -4.2%, BE -3.8%, H -3.6%, AMC -3.4%, BA -3.2%, LEN -2.8%, AMZN -2%, FDX -2%, GOOG -1.9%, LI -1.8%, QQQ -1.8%, IWM -1.7%, POOL -1.6%, ATVI -1.5%, SPY -1.4%, DIA -1.3%, MRO -1%, EBAY -0.9%

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 2nd of Ocotber 2020 - V2(+)

>>> Up
* AMS Raised to Buy at Liberum; PT 27 Swiss francs (+)
* Bureau Veritas Raised to Buy at Goldman; PT 29 euros
* Deutsche Bank Raised to Hold at SocGen
* Endesa Raised to Buy at Citi; PT 25.80 euros
* Erste Raised to Outperform at KBW; PT 27.40 euros
* Getlink SE Raised to Buy at HSBC; PT 14.20 euros
* H&M PT Raised to 205 kronor from 190 kronor at Citi
* Iliad Raised to Buy at MainFirst; PT 195 euros
* IMI Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley; PT 1,260 pence
* Intertek Raised to Neutral at Goldman; PT 6,630 pence
* Krones Raised to Buy at HSBC; PT 67 euros
* Lundin Energy Raised to Outperform at BMO; PT 250 kronor (+)
* RBI Raised to Market Perform at KBW; PT 17.60 euros
* Scor Raised to Outperform at KBW; PT 29 euros
* Sydbank AS Raised to Buy at ABG; PT 120 kroner
* Sydbank AS Raised to Buy at Danske Bank Markets; PT 120 kroner (+)
* TF Bank Raised to Buy at Pareto Securities; PT 100 kronor (+)
* Rapala VMC Raised to Accumulate at Inderes; PT 2.80 euros (+)

>>> Down
* Bayer Cut to Add at AlphaValue
* Burckhardt Cut to Add at Baader Helvea; PT 270 Swiss francs
* FLSmidth Cut to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 207 kroner
* Krones Raised to Buy at LBBW; PT 62 euros
* Lonza Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT 600 Swiss francs
* Melrose Industries Cut to Sell at Panmure Gordon; PT 95 pence
* Rolls-Royce Cut to Hold at MainFirst; PT 120 pence
* Rolls-Royce Cut to Hold at Panmure Gordon; PT 117 pence (+)
* Sanlorenzo/Ameglia Cut to Add at Intesa Sanpaolo; PT 18 euros
* UDG Cut to Hold at Stifel; PT 770 pence (+)
* William Hill Cut to Hold at Berenberg; PT 272 pence

>>> Initiation
* Chi-Med ADRs Reinstated Buy at Deutsche Bank; PT $40
* TechnipFMC Rated New Market Perform at BMO; PT $7.50

>>> Call
* Covestro Top EU Cyclical Pick for Morgan Stanley on Recovery (+)
* FLSmidth Lacks Short-Term Earnings Catalysts, Downgraded at MS (+)
* ‘Hidden Gems’ to Be Found Among U.K. AIM Stocks: Berenberg
* IMI Margin Recovery, Returns Not Priced in: Morgan Stanley
* Ocado’s IP Litigation Could Complicate Future Deals, Exane Says (+)
* Renewables, Grids Preferred for Europe’s Decarbonization: Citi (+)

>>> Stoxx 600 Pre-Market Indications

  • Carnival Plc (POH1 TH) +1.3%
  • Linde (LIN TH) -2.1%
  • AMS (DQW1 TH) -2.1%
    • AMS Raised to Buy at Liberum; PT 27 Swiss francs
  • MTU Aero (MTX TH) -2.1%
  • Equinor (DNQ TH) -2.3%
    • Equinor to Slash Hundreds of Exploration Jobs, E24 Reports
  • Infineon (IFX TH) -2.4%
  • Aegon (AEND TH) -2.5%
  • Lufthansa (LHA TH) -2.6%
  • BHP Group PLC (BIL TH) -2.6%
  • Cancom (COK TH) -3%
  • Dialog Semi (DLG TH) -3.1%
  • Rational (RAA TH) -3.3%

>>> TradeGate Pre-Market Indications

DAX:
  • Fresenius SE (FRE TH) -0.3%
  • Deutsche Telekom (DTE TH) -0.5%
  • Covestro (1COV TH) -0.8%
  • Deutsche Post (DPW TH) -0.9%
  • Daimler (DAI TH) -0.9%
  • Deutsche Bank (DBK TH) -1.7%
    • Deutsche Bank Raised to Hold at SocGen
  • Delivery Hero (DHER TH) -1.8%
  • Continental AG (CON TH) -1.9%
  • Linde (LIN TH) -2.2%
  • Infineon (IFX TH) -2.5%
MDAX:
  • Telefonica Deutschland (O2D TH) +0.7%
  • Thyssenkrupp (TKA TH) +0.2%
    • Thyssenkrupp Is Said to Pick Banks for Next Round of Divestments
  • Qiagen (QIA TH) -0.3%
  • Cancom (COK TH) -1.9%
    • Cancom Investor Raises Voting Rights to 4.66%
  • Shop Apotheke (SAE TH) -2%
  • HelloFresh (HFG TH) -2.2%
    • Morgan Stanley Raises HelloFresh Voting Rights to 5.37%
  • GEA Group (G1A TH) -2.4%
    • GBL Launches EU450m Bonds Offering Exchangeable into GEA Shares
  • Grenke (GLJ TH) -3.8%
    • Grenke Nine Month Leasing New Business Volume Falls 23.5%
SDAX:
  • DIC Asset (DIC TH) +0.6%
  • Global Fashion Group (GFG TH) +0.6%
  • Borussia Dortmund (BVB TH) +0.4%
  • Deutsche Euroshop (DEQ TH) +0.4%
  • Tele Columbus (TC1 TH) Flat
  • Nordex (NDX1 TH) -2%
  • Dr Hoenle (HNL TH) -2.5%
  • Zeal Network (TIMA TH) -3%
  • Sixt (SIX2 TH) -3.7%
  • Deutz (DEZ TH) -4.2%

FT : The gadgets that test consumer privacy limits

The gadgets that test consumer privacy limits
Google and Amazon wrestle with how to fit hardware into everyday life without provoking a backlash

The consumer gadgets that are multiplying around our bodies and homes are the vanguard in a spreading platform war between the biggest tech companies. But they also pose a challenge for their makers: how to fit more closely into everyday life without provoking a backlash.

The limits of Google’s ability to use hardware as the vehicle to extend the reach of its data-hungry advertising system was made clear by the news this week of concessions it is making to get EU approval to buy Fitbit. Among other things, the search company won’t be able to make use of data collected through Fitbit devices to power its ads for a decade.

This points not only to the restrictions Google faces in using acquisitions to extend its reach, but also the growing regulatory resistance to its efforts to spread into new domains of users’ lives. Data is the thing that breathes life into its gadgets, personalising experiences as well as supporting advertising and commerce. Beset by growing political and regulatory concern that it is the champion of a new and invasive form of “surveillance capitalism”, Google needs to tread carefully.

Contrast that with Amazon. A week ago, the ecommerce giant thought nothing of showing off its first indoor drone, designed to patrol a home for intruders. Lifting off from a docking station, the device is the first product of Amazon’s push into “smart home” technology that can move under its own power — the progenitor of the home robots to come.

Eric Schmidt, Google’s former chief executive officer, once talked about the “creepy line” that defines the limits of consumer acceptance of powerful new personal technologies. Google’s aim, he said, was to go as far as it could without actually crossing the line. Amazon, by contrast, seems to think nothing of leaping over and striding straight ahead.

One result is that “surveillance” is now almost part of the Amazon brand, for better or worse. New product announcements such as the indoor drone often produce wry smiles and head-scratching from the tech crowd, not the outrage they might attract if another company had come up with the idea. And many consumers seem to welcome having Orwellian-sounding technologies at their fingertips — as anyone who has a neighbour addicted to the surveillance videos from a Ring doorbell can attest.

Where other tech companies balk at pushing the boundaries of the acceptable, in fact, Amazon ploughs ahead. As Geoff Blaber, an analyst at CCS Insight, says, there is a risk of a backlash, but: “At least they’re addressing the category, and learning.”

Amazon also said last week that it was getting ready to launch a neighbourhood-wide WiFi network (called Sidewalk) that will ride on the back of all those Echo speakers and Ring doorbells in your vicinity, making it possible to track devices (and their owners) well beyond their own homes.

At heart, Amazon is betting that it has permission from consumers to stretch the boundaries of what is acceptable in domestic surveillance. There is a clear risk that this will eventually provoke a privacy reckoning.

The difficulties Google faces in making full use of its devices’ data-gathering capabilities, meanwhile, raise what has become a perennial question for the internet company: why do hardware at all?

This is something Google has never fully answered. Sales volumes of most of its products are low, and it has shied away from putting serious marketing and distribution investment behind them. This week’s announcement of Google’s latest slate of personal gadgets demonstrated the usual confounding mix: some impressive technology at attractive prices, but no sign that Google is about to go all-in on hardware.

There are still reasons to keep trying. For Google, a network of smart devices is a good way to infiltrate the home, embedding its artificial intelligence into the everyday experiences of users. Hardware also plays the role of an expensive hedge against the risk that it will someday be less able to count on others to distribute its mobile services.

Will it ever need to make use of that hedge? Antitrust pressure has been growing, and Europe has already made an attempt to turn Android into a more open platform. There is no sign yet that this is eating into Google’s mobile service revenue. But it makes it highly likely that, for Google customers, gadgets will be part of the tech menu for years to come.