>>> Altice has Cellnex, DST and Cube among suitors for Portuguese fibre-optic ne

Altice has Cellnex, DST and Cube among suitors for Portuguese fibre-optic network worth over EUR 3bn -

Altice [AMS:ATC] has Cellnex of Spain and DST among the suitors for its Portuguese fibre-optic network, reported Jornal Economico.
Unnamed sources told the paper that Cellnex and DST, in partnership with Cube, are among the parties preparing binding offers for Altice’s Portugal assets. There is also at least another global infrastructure fund in the race where non-binding bids were tabled earlier this month and binding ones by the end of May, the report said, adding the final price is likely to surpass EUR 3bn.
Other suitors for the Portuguese fibre-optic network include Antin, Brookfield [NYSE:BIP], I SquaredCapital and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, as previously reported.

>>> What to look at today - 26th of April 2019

Asian stocks fell Friday as earnings season continued. The dollar steadied around a four-month high before the U.S. release on first-quarter economic growth.
Shares declined across the region, though were little changed in Hong Kong. European futures were mixed and U.S. contracts ticked lower. An unexpected tumble in Japanese industrial production, following yesterday’s contraction in South Korea’s GDP, underscored that economies outside the U.S. and China aren’t doing as well. Corporate earnings also failed to give a lift to Asian equities. China’s yuan edged up after President Xi Jinping said his country won’t engage in currency depreciation that harms other nations. Oil ticked lower and Treasuries were flat.
US After Hours MAT +12%, F / GRUB +7%, AMZN +0.6%, SBUX +0.5%, ATEN -11.5%, PFPT -7.5%, INTC -7% among the many earnings/guidance movers

Nikkei -0.22% Hang Seng +0.10% CSI -0.90% Shanghai -0.71% Shenzen -0.73%

Eur4 1.1143 CNH 6.7405 CNY 6.7349 JPY 111.69 GBP 1.2912 CHF 1.0202 RUB 64.6965 TRY 5.9545 WTI$ 64.87 -0.52%

S&P -0.09% EuroStoxx +0.09% FTSE +0.13% Dax -0.03% SMI +0.22%

Macro :
- Buffett May Buy More Bank Stakes After Fed Shift, Barclays Says

Keep an eye on :
- ADP FP : Yellow Vests Plan French Airport Blockades on May 4-5: BFM TV
- ADP FP : Aeroports De Paris 1Q Sales +11.9%; Raises FY Traffic Forecast
- AENA SM : Aena Sees Passenger Traffic Growth at 3.7% in 2019: Filing
- AGFB BB : Active Ownership Capital Boosts Agfa-Gevaert Holding to 13.4%
- AI FP : Air Liquide Confident to Deliver Net Profit Growth in 2019
- AKERBP NO : Aker BP First Quarter Ebitda 1.3% Below Estimates
- AMUN FP : Amundi Posts 1Q Asset Outflows; Net Income Rises 6.4%
- AXA NO : Axactor SE First Quarter Ebitda Beats Estimates
- BESI NA : BE Semiconductor First-Quarter Gross Margin Beats Estimates
- BVI FP : Bureau Veritas Confirms 2019 Outlook
- CAP FP : Capgemini Sees FY Sales At Constant Exchange Rates +5.5% To +8%
- CO FP : Casino 1Q Rev EU8.85B, Slightly Above Est. of EU8.82B
- COFB BB : Cofinimmo First Quarter Adjusted EPS EU1.32 Vs. EU1.47 Y/Y
- CBK GY : Commerzbank’s Zielke: Didn’t Cave in to Unions Over Merger
- CCC LN : Computacenter Sees Earnings Meeting Expectations
- CSGN SW : Credit Suisse Sells Zurich Werdmuehle Branch
- DAI GY : Daimler 1Q Ebit in Line; Cuts Mercedes-Benz Vans Guidance (1)
- DBK GY : Deutsche Bank Fined $500,000 by SEC Over Hedge Fund Disclosures
- DBK GY : Deutsche Bank Cuts 2019 Revenue Guidance (1)
- DTE GY : T-Mobile First Quarter Adjusted Ebitda 2.2% Above Estimates
- DIA SM : Commerzbank Sells Its Debt in DIA, Cinco Dias Reports
- DWS GY : DWS First Quarter Net Flows +EU2.5 Bln
- ECOMB BB : Econocom First Quarter Organic Revenue +1.6%
- EFGN SW : EFG Plans to Repurchase Shares for Employee Incentive Plans
- EPICME NO : Epic Gas to Offer 36.1m Shares at $1.66/Share to Trade On May 23
- EL FP : French Essilor Faction Asks Court to Name Representative:Echos
- ERF FP : Eurofins Scientific 1Q Rev. EU1.07B; Confirms FY Outlook
- ENTRA No : Entra First Quarter Rental Income Meets Estimates
- EXE FP : Exel Industries Says 2H to Be Hit by EU Sugar-Industry Crisis
- FSKRS FH : Fiskars First Quarter Revenue Misses Lowest Estimate
- DEC FP : JCDecaux Names Alan Sullivan as Co-CEO of North America Unit
- FII FP : Lisi 1Q Sales +6.1%; Sees Short-Term Uncertainty Due to 737 Max
- FUR NA : Fugro 1Q 2019 Revenue EU395.0 Mln; FY ’19 Outlook Unchanged (1)
- GLPG NA : Galapagos Maintains FY Oper. Cash Burn EU320 Mln To EU340 Mln
- GAM SW : GAM Shareholders Recommended to Vote Against Executives: FT
- GRNG SS : Granges 1Q Adjusted Operating Profit 1.7% Above Est.
- GVNV NA : GrandVision First Quarter Comparable Sales +5%
- HEMB SS : Hembla First Quarter Rental Income SEK477 Mln
- INTRUM SS : Intrum First Quarter Adjusted Ebit Matches Estimates
- JNPR US : Juniper 1Q Adjusted EPS Beats Est.; Shares Rise 2.6%
- KEMIRA FH : Kemira First Quarter Oper Ebitda Beats Highest Estimate
- KLED SS : Kungsleden First Quarter Rental Rev. SEK586 Mln
- KPN NA : KPN: Prelim. Pact on Partial Network Modernization With Huawei
- KLOVB SS : Klovern 1Q Income From Property Management SEK896 Mln
- KNEBV FH : Kone Needs Stable Markets to Hit High End of New Guidance
- LOOMB SS : Loomis First Quarter Net Sales Miss Lowest Estimate
- NXI FP : Nexity Sees Full Year EBITDA At Least +5%
- PNDXB SS : Pandox 1Q Income From Property Management SEK685 Mln (1)
- PQR SM : *PIOLIN BIDCO TO BID FOR ALL SHARES OF PARQUES REUNIDOS
- PSON LN : Pearson Says Performance is in Line With Expectations
- REC BB : Recticel Unanimously Decided to Reject Kingspan Units Offer
- RNO FP : Renault to Oust Nissan’s Saikawa If He Refuses Merger: Yomiuri
- RNO FP : Renault 1Q Rev. Falls to EU12.53b, Meeting Estimates
- RWE GY : RWE Remains RBC’s Top Pick in German Utilities, EON Challenged
- SAF FP : Safran Says Ahead of Plan on 2019 Guidance
- SAN FP : Sanofi 1Q Business EPS EU1.42; Analysts Expected EU1.32
- SAS S S : SAS Pilot Strike Expands to Include Denmark and Norway
- SESG FP : SES 1Q Ebitda Falls 4.7%, Confirms Targets
- SCHP SW : Schindler 1Q Revenue 1.2% Above Est.; Maintains FY Views (1)
- SGO FP : Saint-Gobain First Quarter Sales EU10.4 Bln
- SK FP : SEB First Quarter Operating Result From Activity EU138 Mln
- GLE FP : SocGen Said to Lose 3 Agriculture Traders Amid Commodity Retreat
- SOP FP : Sopra Steria Sees Full Year Adjusted Operating Margin About 10%
- SIOE BB : Sioen First Quarter Revenue EU133.6 Mln Vs. EU131.8 Mln Y/Y
- SAABB SS : Saab First Quarter Sales Beat Highest Estimate
- LIGHT NA : Signify Full Year Adjusted Ebita Margin Forecast Beats Estimates
- SSO NO : Scatec Solar First Quarter Ebitda Misses Lowest Estimate
- SEV FP : Suez Gets EU220 Million in Cash From Aguas Argentinas Settlement
- SEV FP : Suez 1Q Ebit Rises 5.3% to EU293m; 2019 Forecasts Confirmed
- TEP LN : Telecom Plus Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan; Price Target 15 Pounds
- THULE SS : Thule First Quarter Net Sales Meet Estimates
- FP FP : Total 1Q Adj. Net Income $2.76b; Est. $2.78b
- FR FP : Valeo First Quarter Revenue Beats Highest Estimate, Valeo’s 1Q Update Should Inspire Some Confidence, Jefferies Says
- VANL LN : Van Elle Sees Earnings Short of Forecast
- WHA NA : Wereldhave Full Year EPS Forecast Misses Estimates
- WDI GY : Wirecard Supervisory Chairman May Not Seek Re-Election: Platow
- WPP LN : WPP Keeps Expectations Unchanged
- ZURN SW : Zurich Life to Pay $5.12M Penalty Over Tax-Related Offenses: DOJ

>>> After Hours Summary: MAT +12%, F / GRUB +7%, AMZN +0.6%, SB

After Hours Summary: MAT +12%, F / GRUB +7%, AMZN +0.6%, SBUX +0.5%, ATEN -11.5%, PFPT -7.5%, INTC -7% among the many earnings/guidance movers

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: EHTH +12.5%, MAT +12%, PRO +7.7% (light volume), F +7.4%, GRUB +7.3%, SFLY +4.2%, SWN +3.7%, BJRI +2.8%, LOGM +2%, RSG +1.9% (light volume), CY +0.7%, AMZN +0.6%, SBUX +0.5%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: SBBP +7% (presents new secondary endpoint results from the Phase 3 SONICS study of RECORLEV for the potential treatment of endogenous Cushing's syndrome), CNSL +4.4% (rebounding from 34% decline on earnings and dividend elimination news), TOCA +4.3% (initiated with a Overweight rating and $28 tgt at Cantor Fitzgerald), TEUM +4.1% (initiated with Outperform rating and $7 tgt at Oppenheimer), RBBN +4% (discloses binding mediator's proposal that resolves the six previously disclosed lawsuits between the Company and Metaswitch), ZAYO +3.7% (drifting higher in extended trading on light volume amid renewed M&A chatter), COG +3.1% / BLMN +2.6% (ticking higher ahead of earnings tomorrow), CRC +2.8% (after closing nearly 16% lower on the day), GM +2.1% / FCAU +1.2% (following F earnings/guidance), HAS +1% (following MAT results), HEXO +0.8% (initiated with Buy at Desjardins), CNC +0.6% (following CEO appearance on MadMoney)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: ATEN -11.5%, PFPT -7.5%, FII -7.2% (light volume), INTC -7.1%, BEAT -5%, SGEN -4.5%, SIVB -3.8%, VCRA -3.6% (light volume), FTV -3.2% (light volume), ILMN -2.6%, MHK -1.9% (light volume)

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: INTU -5.2% (reports 7% increase in TurboTax Online units season-to-date; updates Consumer Group revenue guidance), ADNT -2.1% (priced private offering of $800 mln 7.00% senior first lien notes due 2026), WMT -1.4% /  TGT -0.6% / etf- XRT -0.6% (pulling back following AMZN results and plans for Free Prime Two-Day shipping will evolve to Free Prime One-Day shipping this year), MRK -0.7% (announces topline findings from final analysis of Phase 3 KEYNOTE-062 trial evaluating KEYTRUDA in combination with chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma)

Intel (INTC -7%) earnings/disappointing guidance is pressuring semiconductor / chip names in extended trade (ETFs SMH -1.9%, SOXX -1.6%): ON -2.7%, MU -2.6%, NVDA -2.5%, WDC -2.4%, UCTT -2.1%,AMD -1.5%, MRVL -1.3%, STM -1.3%, QCOM -1%, LRCX -1%, AVGO -0.9%, ADI -0.9%

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades -

>>> Up
* Commerzbank Upgraded to Hold at Nord/LB; PT 8.50 Euros
* Millicom GDRs Upgraded to Overweight at Barclays; PT 680 Kronor
* Stagecoach Upgraded to Buy at Citi

>>> Down
* Assa Abloy Downgraded to Hold at Jefferies; PT 210 Kronor
* Atlas Copco Downgraded to Hold at SEB Equities; PT 320 Kronor
* Atlas Copco Downgraded to Hold at Handelsbanken; PT 315 Kronor
* Axalta Downgraded to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT $27
* Bonava Cut to Sell at Handelsbanken; Price Target 115 Kronor
* Bonava Downgraded to Reduce at Kepler Cheuvreux; PT 113 Kronor
* Ferrari Downgraded to Hold at HSBC
* Kone Downgraded to Sell at ABG; Price Target 42 Euros
* Kuehne + Nagel Cut to Sector Perform at RBC; PT 155 Francs
* Norma Downgraded to Hold at Deutsche Bank
* UBS Downgraded to Hold at DZ Bank; Price Target 14.30 Francs
* Wereldhave Downgraded to Reduce at AlphaValue

>>> Initiation
* Blue Prism Rated New Buy at Panmure Gordon; PT 24.25 Pounds
* Bobst Rated New Buy at Berenberg; PT 93 Francs
* Inventiva Rated New Outperform at ; PT 10 Euros

>>> Call
* RWE Remains RBC’s Top Pick in German Utilities, EON Challenged
* Valeo’s 1Q Update Should Inspire Some Confidence, Jefferies Says

>>> US Close Dow -0.51% S&P -0.04% Nasdaq +0.21% Russell -0.79%

Closing Stock Market Summary

The S&P 500 (-0.04%) finished fractionally lower on Thursday, although strong earnings reports from Facebook (FB 193.26, +10.68, +5.9%) and Microsoft (MSFT 129.15, +4.14, +3.3%) helped the broader market overcome early weakness stemming from 3M (MMM 190.72, -28.36, -13.0%) and other industrial stocks.

Gains in Facebook and Microsoft also helped the Nasdaq Composite increase 0.2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.5%, dragged lower by shares of 3M after it provided weak results and disappointing guidance. The Russell 2000 lost 0.8%.

The stock market began the day with several reminders about slowing growth overseas. South Korea reported a 0.3% qtr/qtr contraction in first quarter GDP; the Bank of Japan signaled rates will be kept at extremely low levels until at least the spring of 2020; and 3M attributed its poor results to slowing conditions in China and other end markets. 

Slowing global growth, though, really hasn't deterred investors from U.S. stocks this year. The U.S. economy, after all, appears to remain in solid footing. The latest economic data today showed durable goods orders increase 2.7% m/m in March (Briefing.com consensus +0.9%).

At the same time, expectations that mega-cap companies will continue to post solid growth has helped renew their leadership. The strong earnings reports from Facebook and Microsoft, both of which included double-digit revenue growth, helped reinforce buying interest.

Strength in Facebook also contributed to the 1.1% gain the S&P 500 communication services sector. The health care sector (+1.1%) also outperformed, while the industrials sector (-2.0%) dragged on the market following a host of negative responses to earnings reports.

The 13% drop in 3M carried the most weight with shares of UPS (UPS 105.13, -9.30, -8.1%), Raytheon (RTN 177.37, -8.08, -4.4%), Rockwell Automation (ROK 176.22, -12.68, -6.7%), and Masco (MAS 37.50, -2.49, -6.2%) following suit.

Visa (V 161.02, -0.47, -0.3%), Tesla (TSLA 247.63, -11.03, -4.3%), Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG 678.07, -31.68, -4.5%), and Xilinx (XLNX 115.86, -23.86, -17.1%) also fell following their results.

U.S. Treasuries finished slightly lower, pushing yields slightly higher. The 2-yr yield and the 10-yr yield increased one basis point each to 2.31% and 2.53%, respectively. The U.S. Dollar Index finished unchanged at 98.18. WTI crude lost 1.0% to $65.17/bbl.

Reviewing Thursday's economic data, which included Durable Goods Orders for March and the weekly Initial and Continuing Claims report:

  • Durable goods orders for March increased 2.7% m/m (consensus +0.9%) while orders, excluding transportation, rose 0.4% m/m (consensus +0.3%).
    • The key takeaway from the report is that orders for nondefense capital goods, excluding aircraft, jumped 1.3%. These orders are a proxy for business spending, so one can say that business spending accelerated in March in an encouraging fashion.
  • Initial claims for the week ending April 20 increased by 37,000 to 230,000 (consensus 215,000). Continuing claims for the week ending April 13 increased by 1,000 to 1.655 million.
    • The headline number for initial claims was disappointing, yet the silver lining -- and the key takeaway -- is that the four-week moving average of 206,00 for this series remains close to a 50-year low.

Looking ahead, investors will receive the advance estimate for first quarter GDP and the final reading for the University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment for April on Friday.

  • Nasdaq Composite +22.4% YTD
  • Russell 2000 +16.8% YTD
  • S&P 500 +16.7% YTD
  • Dow Jones Industrial Average +13.4% YTD