>>> Taxify secures USD 175m in round led by Daimler (translated)

Taxify secures USD 175m in round led by Daimler

Taxify, the Estonian ridesharing technology company, has completed an USD 175m funding round led by the German automotive group Daimler [ETR:DAI], reported Postimees.
The Russian-language item referred to an official press release for the information, adding that the company’s valuation reached USD 1bn with this latest funding round.
Other investors included Chinese car-hailing company Didi Chuxing, French sponsor Korelya Capital, and a private investor and founder of fintech startup Transferwise, Taavet Hinrikus, the item added.
Taxify has around 500,000 drivers and around 10m passengers using its platform, the report said.

>>> Photo-Me shares drop 25% on drab photobooth demand in Japan

Shares in Photo-Me, a British company that operates photo kiosks and ID card booths across Europe and Asia, have fallen by a quarter after it warned on profits because of poor trading in Japan.

Japan has the highest density of photobooths worldwide, according to Photo-Me, with the number having increased significantly since the government rolled out a new ID card programme two years ago.

That new ID system is not compulsory, however. And while photobooth operators had installed large numbers of new machines in preparation for the new ID cards coming in, the system has “not gained the momentum photobooth operators initially anticipated,” Photo-Me said.

The UK group said that it now expected to make £44m of profit before tax for the year to next April, which was “below current market expectations”.

Its shares fell by 25 per cent at the start of trade in London on Wednesday morning to 114p.

>>> EU said to be weighing a much stronger warning on the risk of Brexit talks c

EU said to be weighing a much stronger warning on the risk of Brexit talks collapsing without a deal if the U.K. fails to lay out its position in more detail next month - financial press
- EU bloc has made clear Britain needs to show a more detailed view of how it intends to keep the Irish border open by the time EU leaders gather at the end of June
- Will stop short of threatening to halt negotiations

>>> What to look at today - 30th of May 2018

Asian equities slid Wednesday as concerns about the repercussions of Italy’s political turmoil and the renewal of trade tensions between the U.S. and China gripped financial markets. The yen edged higher, while Treasury yields recovered after plunging Tuesday. Financial shares led the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lower as the Italian impasse reminded investors of the European debt crisis and its knock-on effects across global banking. The regional gauge is heading for its lowest close since February as shares tumbled from Tokyo to Sydney. Ten-year Treasuries consolidated after yields sank the most since the U.K. voted to exit the European Union in 2016. The dollar steadied and the euro traded around its lowest since July 2017. Gauges of volatility soared.
US After Hours : CRM +4.2% following earnings/guidance, DKS / KORS indicated higher ahead of tomorrow's earnings releases

Nikkei -1.57% Hang Seng -1.64% CSI -1.17% Shanghai -1.40% Shenzen -1.33%

Eur$ 1.1557 CNH 6.4235 CNY 6.4254 JPY 108.67 GBP 1.3260 CHF 0.9932 RUB 62.8506 WTI$ 66.51 -0.33%

S&P +0.08% EuroStoxx -0.12% FTSE -0.28% DAX -0.17% SMI -0.25%

Macro :
- Italy May Be Headed for July Vote as Cottarelli Stumbles
- Draghi Will Need a Much Bigger Bazooka This Time: Markets Live
- Italy Bond Rout Driven by Liquidity Vacuum as Buyers Vanish
- Trump Ratchets Up Pressure on China With Swerve on Tariff Plans


Keep an eye on :
- AALB NA : Aalberts Buys French Metal-Treatment Co. PEM; No Price Given
- AENA SM : Aena Sees International Expansion With Private Partners
- ANF FP : ANF Immobilier, Icade Get Exemption from France’s AMF on Merger
- MT NA : ArcelorMittal EVP Robrecht Himpe to Retire
- ASWN SW : Asmallworld Launches Shr Placement of up to 813,715 New Shrs
- BAS GY : EU Approves BASF as Suitable Purchaser of Bayer Divestments
- BG US : Bunge Investors Boost Votes Against Board Compared With Year Ago
- BWO NO : BW Offshore First Quarter Ebitda 1.7% Below Estimates
- CA FP : Carrefour to Shift Some Hypermarket Space to Other Uses: Figaro
- CATB SS : Catella Is Said to Ready Sale of Luxembourg Banking, Card Assets
- AM FP : Dassault Succession Doesn’t Change Operations, Executive Says
- DERR LN : Martin Sorrell Is Said to Take Over Derriston Capital: Sky
- DIE BB : D'Ieteren First Quarter Revenue +3.5%
- DIS US : Murdoch Says Fox Is 100% Focused on Getting Disney Deal Done
- DNLM LN : Dunelm Chairman Andy Harrison Buys 92,452 Shares
- FRU GY : Ferratum First Quarter Ebit EU10.2 Mln
- GLEN LN : Vitol, Glencore Interested for Hellenic Petroleum, Euro2day Says
- INDUA SS : Industrivarden CEO Martin Hamner to Leave Position on Aug. 1
- KINVB SS : Kinnevik Leads $16m Investment in Card Company Pleo
- KSC GY : KPS Adjusts Earnings Forecast for 2017/2018
- NG/ LN : EPA in $100m Pact With National Grid on Gowanus Site Cleanup
- NIBEB SS : Nibe CEO Sees Many Interesting Acquisition Opportunities: DI
- NDA SS : Nordea, Invesdor to Offer Range of Fundraising Options to Cos.
- NOVN SW : Novartis’s Promacta Gets FDA Priority Review
- NOVOB DC : Novo Nordisk: Oral Semaglutide Trial Achieved Primary Objective
- OPUS SS : Opus Buys Two Companies in Argentina
- SBRE LN : Sabre Insurance Group Holder to Offer Shares
- SF3 GY : IPO of STS Group Offer Price/Shr at EU24
- SGRE SM : Siemens Gamesa May Pay Dividend Next Year, CEO Tells Economista
- STR AV : Strabag First Quarter Loss EU116.7 Mln
- VK FP ; Vallourec to Supply Framatome W/ Steam Generator Tubes
- VIV FP : Mediapro, BeIN Win France’s Ligue 1 2020-24 TV Rights: L’Equipe

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 30 of May 2018

>>> Up
* Central Asia Metals Upgraded to Buy at Peel Hunt
* HI IM Raised to Outperform at EnVent S.p.A.; PT 6.03 Euros
* KWS Saat Upgraded to Buy at Bankhaus Lampe
* Linde Upgraded to Overweight at JPMorgan; PT 217 Euros
* Merck KGaA Upgraded to Buy at Commerzbank; PT 100 Euros
* Safran Upgraded to Buy at Oddo BHF; PT 117 Euros
* Scor Upgraded to Hold at Baader-Helvea; Price Target 32 Euros
* Schneider Cut to Neutral at Goldman; Price Target 83 Euros

>>> Down
* Aryzta Downgraded to Add at AlphaValue
* Dunelm Downgraded to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT 6.20 Pounds
* Marshalls Cut to Hold at Shore Capital; PT Set to 4.81 Pounds
* Palfinger Downgraded to Hold at HSBC; PT 37 Euros
* Sartorius Downgraded to Reduce at HSBC; PT 94 Euros

>>> Initiation
* Porsche SE Rated New Outperform at MainFirst; PT 104 Euros

>>> Call

>>> US After Hours Summary: CRM +4.2% following earnings/guidance, DKS


After Hours Summary: CRM +4.2% following earnings/guidance, DKS / KORS indicated higher ahead of tomorrow's earnings releases

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: CRM +4.2%, SB +1.6% (light volume)

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: LPG +5.2% (continued strength after confirming that it has received an unsolicited proposal from BW LPG to combine with Dorian), LGCY +2.7% (10% owner Baines Creek disclosed the purchase of 80K shares worth ~$445K), DKS +1.7% and KORS +1.1% (ahead of earnings), EXEL +0.9% (FDA accepts supplemental New Drug Application for CABOMETYX)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: TXMD -6.7% (TX-004HR PDUFA target action date is today May 29), TTOO -6.5% (announces 5.65 mln share offering), OCN -1.6% (CFO Michael Bourque to resign), INWK -1.4% (light volume; postpones May 31 annual meeting - still in the process of restating historical financial statements and requires additional time), GDS -1.3% (to offer up to US$250 mln of convertible senior notes due 2025)

>>> US Close D ow -1,58% S&P -1,16% Nasdaq -0,50% Russell -0,20% VIX 17,05

Closing Market Summary: Italian Political Strife Prompts Flight to Safety

Uncertainty surrounding the future of the Italian government sent equity markets lower around the globe on Tuesday as U.S. investors returned to the trading desk for the first time this week following an extended Memorial Day weekend. The S&P 500 lost 1.2% on Tuesday, settling at a three-week low, while the Dow and the Nasdaq ended lower by 1.6% and 0.5%, respectively. The small-cap Russell 2000 showed relative strength, settling lower by just 0.2%.

On Sunday, Italian President Sergio Mattarella moved to block the formation of a euroskeptic government, vetoing the economic minister nominee of an anti-establishment coalition that's aiming to come to power. The president's veto puts Italy on track for a snap election, which some insiders fear could become a de facto referendum on Italy's membership in the European Union. Italy's major stock index, the MIB, dropped 2.7% on Tuesday, extending its two-week decline to 12.1%. Italian debt also dropped, sending the yield on the Italian 10-yr bond seven basis points higher to 3.18%, a fresh four-year high.

Separately, Spain's major stock index, the IBEX, tumbled 2.5% on Tuesday after the country's parliament agreed to a vote of confidence in Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's leadership following a corruption scandal involving 29 individuals with ties to Mr. Rajoy's People's Party. The vote is scheduled for Friday.

In a flight to safety, European investors bid up German bunds, sending the 10-yr bund yield eight basis points lower to 0.25%, which is its lowest level in nearly a year. American debt was also in demand, pushing yields lower across the curve. The yield on the benchmark 10-yr U.S. Treasury note, for instance, dropped 16 basis points to 2.77%, which is a fresh seven-week low. The 10-yr yield is now about 35 basis points below the seven-year high it hit less than two weeks ago on May 17.

Financial shares sold off sharply in reaction to the sudden decline in yields. The S&P 500's financial sector ended lower by 3.4%, closing at the bottom of the sector standings by a comfortable margin; the next-worst performing group was materials with a loss of 1.8%. On the flip side, the rate-sensitive utilities (unch) and real estate (+0.3%) sectors were the top performers.

European political worries weighed heavily on the euro, which dropped 0.8% against the U.S. dollar to 1.1539, hitting its lowest level in nearly a year. The dollar's relative strength didn't bode well for most dollar-denominated commodities, including crude oil. West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped 1.7% on Tuesday to $66.78 per barrel, slipping further from the three-and-a-half year high they hit last week. In addition to a strengthening dollar, concerns that Saudi Arabia and Russia are planning to ramp up production have weighed on crude prices as of late.

Some late buying brought the major U.S. stock indices up from their lowest marks of the day in the final minutes of the session. At its session low, the S&P 500 was down 1.6% at 2677, which is just five points above its 50-day moving average. Meanwhile, the Dow was down as much as 2.0%, and the Nasdaq was down as much as 1.1%.

Reviewing Tuesday's economic data, which was limited to the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index for May and the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index for March:

  • The consumer confidence reading for May increased to 128.0 (consensus 127.5) from the prior month's revised reading of 125.6 (from 128.7).
    • The key takeaway from the report is that consumers' assessment of current conditions is at a 17-year high, which matches up neatly with the understanding that the unemployment rate is at a 17-year low.
  • The Case-Shiller 20-city Index increased 6.8% in March (consensus +6.4%), while the February increase was left unrevised at 6.8%.

On Wednesday, investors will receive a number of economic reports, including the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, the ADP Employment Change report for May (consensus 183K), the second estimate of first quarter GDP (consensus 2.3%), both the Advance International Trade in Goods (consensus -$70.7 billion) and Advance Wholesale Inventories reports for April, and the Fed's Beige Book for April.

  • Nasdaq Composite +7.1% YTD
  • Russell 2000 +5.7% YTD
  • S&P 500 +0.6% YTD
  • Dow Jones Industrial Average -1.5% YTD

>>> HP reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS in-line; guides FY18 EP

HP reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS in-line; guides FY18 EPS in-line (21.32 -0.58)
  • Reports Q2 (Apr) earnings of $0.48 per share, in-line with the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.48; revenues rose 12.9% year/year to $14 bln vs the $13.57 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Operating margin was 7.4% compared to 7.6% in year ago quarter.
  • Q2 free cash flow was $937 million.
  • Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.49-$0.52 vs. $0.49 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
  • Co issues in-line guidance for FY18, sees EPS of $1.97-$2.02 vs. $1.97 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. In addition, HPQ anticipates generating free cash flow of at least $3.7 billion for FY18.