>>> What to look at today - 4th of April 2016

Dow -0.78% S&P-0.87% NAsdaq-1.13% Russell-1.68%
US Market Closed Lower, on down tick on oil & concerns over global growth disappointing manufacturing PMI readings from China (49.4 in April from 49.7 in March) and the U.K. (49.2 in April from 50.7 in March) both showed larger than expected contractions in April. RBA Cut & Fed speak that continues to treat the June FOMC meeting as "live" for further rate hikes has added to the bearish sentiment via stronger USD. WTI crude ended its day lower by 2.5% ($43.64/bbl) as investors ruminated over supply increases from OPEC states and looked forward to the API's latest inventory report. In the Tech Sector AAPL Outperformed after few days of Underperformance. Volume were in line with average at 975mil shares. US After Hours : ETSY +16%, ZG +14%, CRAY -19% following earnings; MDVN +4% on reports of interest from PFE, INTN+3.3% on CEO Purchases. Asian equity markets are tracking the selling on Wall St, where the overnight rally has been fully reversed. China state planner NDRC warned the economy is faced with downward pressure in investment, even as the financial sector remains burdened by the increase in bad loans. According to a Chinese press report, 11 out of 16 banks reporting Q1 results thus far saw higher levels of NPLs. Japan markets remain closed until Friday, though markets remain on edge given the recent one-way trade in Yen pairs. Ted Cruz announced he was pulling out of the race.

Nikkei Closed Hang Seng -0.92% Shanghai +0.06%

Eur$1.1486 CNH 6.5081 CNY 6.4984 JPY 107.11 GBP 1.4542 CHF 0.9567 RUB$ 66.4294 WTI$ 43.80(+0.34%)

SPX-0.10% EuroStoxx-0.07% Dax +0.02% SMI -0.03%

Macro :
- ECB Tells Veneto Banca Weak Governance Hurt Lender in the Past
- NPL Flows, NII Key for Future Italy Banks Profitability: Citi
- Trump Becomes Presumptive Republican Nominee as Cruz Exits Race

Keep an eye on :
- ABI BB : AB InBev 1Q Adj. Ebitda, Organic Revenue Misses Ests., Says Organic Beer Vol. Decline Driven by Brazil
- ADS GY : Adidas Says Actively Seeking a Buyer for Part of Golf Business, Adidas 1Q FX Neutral Sales Up 22%, Adidas Brand Up 26%
- AF FP : Air France to Put First Boeing Dreamliners into Service in 2017
- AF FP : Air France-KLM 1Q Loss Narrows; Fuel, Unit Rev Outlook Uncertain
- AF FP : Air France to Impose Legacy ‘Transform’ Plan on Pilots: Echos
- ATC NA : FCC ‘In Favor’ of Approving Altice-Cablevision Deal
- AAPL US : Joel Greenblatt Says He Bought Apple Recently: CNBC
- CS FP : Axa 1Q Rev. Rises 1% to EU31.8b, Life & Savings Little Changed
- BEI GY : 1Q SALES EU1.67B; EST. EU1.72B, 1Q CONSUMER UNIT REV EU1.40B, CONFIRMS FY FORECAST
- BLT LN : Brazil Seeks $44 Billion in Suit Over Spill at BHP-Vale Mine Dam -10% in Australia
- GBB FP : Bourbon Says 2016 to See Low Point in Cycle; 1Q Sales Miss
- CSGN VX : Credit Suisse to Sell Distressed Debt Assets for ~$1.27b: WSJ
- DTE GY : Deutsche Telekom 1Q Adj. Ebitda Beats Ests.; Keeps Outlook
- DLG GY : Dialog Semiconductor Lowers 2016 Rev., Gross Margin View, Dialog Semi 1Q Rev. Matches, Underlying Op. Profit Misses Ests.
- EBS AV : Erste Bank 1Q Net Income Rises, Beats Ests; Risk Provisions Drop
- EDPR PL : EDP Renovaveis 1Q Net EU75m vs EU57m Y/y on Added Capacity
- EUCAR FP : Avis Sees 2016 Rev. Up 3%-5%, Higher Than Est.; Shares Rebound
- EVK GY : Evonik 1Q Adj. Ebitda Beats Estimates; Confirms 2016 Outlook
- FCC SM : FCC Aims to Refinance EU3B of Debt, Cinco Dias Reports
- FINGB SS : Fingerprint Cards Seeks Compound Rev. Growth of 60% in 2016-2018
- FIS1V FH : Fiskars 1Q Net Sales Increase 29% Y/y; Keeps 2016 Outlook
- FDR FP : Fonciere des Regions 1Q Rental Rev. Rises 5.5% to EU140m
- FNTN GY : Freenet Sticks to 2016 Guidance After ’Very Robust’ 1Q Earnings
- GL FP : Galeries Lafayette Unions Refuse Sunday Opening: Echos
- GBLB BB : GBL Spends EU418m Raising Holdings in Adidas, Umicore, Ontex
- HEI GY : HeidelbergCement 1Q a Strong Set of Results, Goodbody Says
- INW IM : Telecom Italia’s Inwit 1Q Net Income EU23.5m, Rev EU81.7m
- KER FP : Kering: Emmanuel Gintzburger Appointed CEO of Alexander Mcqueen
- KCO GY : Kloeckner Says Well On Track to Achieve FY Targets
- KU2 GY : Kuka 1Q Rev. Below Estimate, Confirms 2016 Forecast
- LR FP : Legrand 1Q Sales In Line, Confirms 2016 Targets
- NDA SS : LHV Isn’t Interested in Buying Nordea’s Baltic Units, BNS Says
- ORP FP : Orpea 1Q Sales of EU680.5m Beat Average Estimate of EU666m
- PARG SW : Pargesa 1Q Loss Per Shr CHF4.39 Vs EPS CHF1.02 Y/y
- UG FP : Citroen to Produce Cars With Iran’s Saipa, IRNA Reports
- SGO FP : Wendel Says BNP, Goldman Bookrunners in Saint-Gobain Sale
- SAN FP : Pfizer Said to Approach Medivation on Potential Buy: Reuters - http://reut.rs/1QRQBkD - MDVN @ 60.10
- SIE GY : Siemens 2Q Net Profit Halves, Beats Est.; 2016 Outlook Confirmed
- GLE FP : SocGen 1Q Net Beats Estimate, Targets Additional Cost Cuts, CEO Says Can’t Guarantee to Reach 10% ROE in 2016
- SDA1V FH : Sponda 1Q EPS Meets Estimates; NAV per Share Rises
- SYNN VX : Syngenta Appoints J. Erik Fyrwald as CEO as of June 1
- HO FP : Thales Q1 Sales EU2.73b; New Orders at EU2.31b
- VK FP : Vallourec Says 1Q Loss Widens to EU284m, Confirms FY Guidance
- VIE FP : *VEOLIA 1Q REV. EU6.089B; EST. EU6.217B, 1Q CURRENT NET EU173M; EST. EU190M, CONFIRMS 2016, 2018 TARGETS
- VOLVB BB : Volvo Cars Posts 1Q Op. Profit Margin of 7.5% on XC90 SUV Sales
- VIG AV : Wienerberger 1Q Ebitda EU40m; Outlook Confirmed

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 4th of April 2016

>>> Up
*ALPHA BANK RAISED FROM EQUAL WEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY
*EUROBANK ERGASIAS RAISED TO OVERWEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY
*LUXOTTICA RAISED TO OUTPERFORM AT RAYMOND JAMES
*PIRAEUS BANK RAISED TO OVERWEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY
*SOPRA STERIA GROUP RAISED TO BUY AT HSBC
*STRAUMANN RAISED TO BUY AT KEPLER CHEUVREUX
*UMICORE RAISED TO NEUTRAL VS UNDERPERFORM AT BOFAML

>>> Down
*ELIOR GROUP CUT TO HOLD AT HSBC
*JSE CUT TO HOLD VS BUY AT DEUTSCHE BANK
*LPKF CUT TO HOLD VS BUY AT HSBC
*LUFTHANSA CUT TO SELL VS REDUCE AT ALPHAVALUE
*MORRISON CUT TO UNDERPERFORM VS MARKETPERFORM AT BERNSTEIN
*PROSIEBENSAT.1 MEDIA SE CUT TO HOLD AT KEPLER CHEUVREUX

>>> PT Change


>>> Initiation


>>> Call

>>> Asian Update

Asian Market Update: New Zealand jobless rate rises on spike in labor force; Sellers return to stocks as USD rises and Oil retreats; Ted Cruz suspends campaign

***Economic Data***
- (AU) AUSTRALIA APR AIG PERF OF SERVICES INDEX: 49.7 V 49.5 PRIOR; 2nd month of contraction
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND Q1 UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: 5.7% V 5.5%E; EMPLOYMENT CHANGE Q/Q: 1.2% (1-year high) V 0.6%E; Y/Y: 2.0% V 1.3%E
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND APR ANZ COMMODITY PRICE M/M: -0.8% V -1.3% PRIOR; 2nd straight decline
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND APR QV HOUSE PRICES Y/Y: 12.0% V 11.4% PRIOR; 1st rise since Nov
- (UK) APR BRC SHOP PRICE INDEX Y/Y: -1.7% V -1.7% PRIOR (36th month of decline)
- (KR) South Korea Apr Foreign Reserves: $372.5B v $369.8B prior

***Index Snapshot (as of 04:30 GMT)***
- Nikkei225 closed, S&P/ASX -1.0%, Kospi -0.6%, Shanghai Composite -0.2%, Hang Seng -1.0%, Jun S&P500 -0.1% at 2,054

***Commodities/Fixed Income***
- June gold -0.8% at $1,282/oz, June crude oil flat at $43.65/brl, Jul copper -0.1% at $2.21/lb
- (US) Weekly API Oil Inventories: Crude: +1.3M v -1.1M prior
- USD/CNY: (CN) PBOC SETS YUAN MID POINT AT 6.4943 V 6.4565 PRIOR; weakest Yuan setting since Apr 28th; biggest margin of weakening in 9 months
- (CN) PBOC to inject CNY100B in 7-day reverse repos
- (AU) Australia MoF (AOFM) sells A$700M in 4.25% 2026 Bonds; avg yield: 2.4144%; bid-to-cover: 2.89x

***Market Focal Points/FX***
- Asian equity markets are tracking the selling on Wall St, where the overnight rally has been fully reversed. In the absence of meaningful new data, soft China Caixin PMI and surprise rate cut by the RBA have been widely cited as evidence of a slowdown in global growth. Out of the US, Fed speak that continues to treat the June FOMC meeting as "live" for further rate hikes has added to the bearish sentiment via stronger USD which, in turn, weighed on oil prices for the 2nd straight day. In USD majors, USD/JPY spiked toward 107.50 in the first hour of Asia trade before consolidating in 107.00-40 range for the balance of the session. Post-RBA AUD/USD selling ebbed below $0.7470 and the pair retraced to around $0.75 level. NZD/USD came under initial pressure after Q1 jobless rate rose higher than expected, then recovered to $0.6940 before sliding to 0.6880s - a 1-week low. USD strength was also on display in the latest Yuan fix, as PBoC weakened CNY by the biggest amount in 9 months.

- Down under, after yesterday's RBA surprise rate cut decision and subsequent Budget release, Australia PM Turnbull reiterated that Australia can avert a recession as the govt has a long term plan to reduce the deficit and China growth story would remain intact. Recall Australia maintained its projections for achieving return to budget surplus by FY20/21 despite announcing reductions of corporate tax rates. S&P has also subsequently affirmed Australia AAA rating. In New Zealand, Q1 unemployment rose to 5.7% even with q/q employment change rising by the biggest margin in over a year. The strong job growth / higher unemployment dynamic was the result of a 12-year high increase in the Kiwi labor force, sending participation rate up to 69.0% v 68.6% expected - the biggest increase in 11 years.

- China state planner NDRC warned the economy is faced with downward pressure in investment, even as the financial sector remains burdened by the increase in bad loans. According to a Chinese press report, 11 out of 16 banks reporting Q1 results thus far saw higher levels of NPLs. There was some better news in the materials / industrials space - according to Steel Logistics Committee, Apr PMI for the steel sector saw its first expansion in 2 years.

- Japan markets remain closed until Friday, though markets remain on edge given the recent one-way trade in Yen pairs. Long positioning among speculators has been around multi-year highs and stops are tight, raising the probability of spikes such as the one markets experienced in early Asia trade today. Comments from BOJ's Kuroda and Fin Min Aso earlier were boilerplate - former reiterating commitment to take additional easing measures if deemed necessary and latter stating the govt maintains its focus on FX moves. Separately, Japan's monthly GDP, according to JCER, was down 0.5% m/m as decline in consumption overshadowed slight increase in exports and capital investment.

- Stateside, just when the tone of Republican primaries took a turn for the worse, a decisive victory by Donald Trump in Indiana virtually cemented his path to the threshold number of delegates to secure the nomination. Ted Cruz announced he was pulling out of the race as the probability of a contested convention shrunk, and RNC's Priebus called for the GOP to unite behind the presumptive nominee Trump. Sanders defeated Clinton in Indiana but did not make a significant dent in her delegate lead. Still, the Democratic primary race is likely to continue until the California poll in early June.

***Equities***
US equities / ADRs:
- ETSY: Reports Q1 +$0.01 v -$0.02e, R$81.8M v $76.0Me; Affirms 3-year outlook; +12.9%
- Z: Reports Q1 -$0.13 v -$0.10e, R$186M v $127M y/y; +11.9% afterhours
- MDVN: Pfizer said to have approached Medivation to express interest in a takeover bid - press; +4.6% afterhours
- TSE: Reports Q1 $1.62 v $1.33e, R$894M v $949Me; +4.3% afterhours
- CAR: Reports Q1 -$0.28 v -$0.11e, R$1.88B v $1.88Be; +2.6% afterhours
- DVN: Reports Q1 -$0.53 v -$0.60e, R$2.13B v $2.59Be; +2.3% afterhours
- CBS: Reports Q1 $1.02 v $0.94e, R$3.85B v $3.82Be; +2.2% afterhours
- AGU: Reports Q1 $0.05 v -$0.07e, R$2.73B v $2.75Be; -0.5% afterhours
- WU: Reports Q1 $0.37 v $0.38e, R$1.30B v $1.31Be; -1.7% afterhours

Notable movers by sector:
- Consumer discretionary: SJM Holdings 880.HK -1.2% (Q1 result); Sydney Airport SYD.AU +0.4% (guidance); Peak Sports Products Co 1968.HK -7.1% (Q1 result)
- Financials: Evergrande Real Estate Group 3333.HK -1.6% (Apr result); QBE Insurance Group QBE.AU +1.9% (targets additional expenses cuts)
- Industrials: Hyundai Motor Co 005380.KR -1.4% (Apr China sales)
- Energy: Santos STO.AU -6.5% (to purchase solar power)

(BN) NYC Makes Progress in Altice-Cablevision Deal Approval: NYP

New York City officials are moving closer to approving Altice’s $17 billion takeover of Cablevision, The Post has learned.
The mayor’s office on Wednesday plans to announce that the committee tasked with reviewing the merger has been making progress in its negotiations with Altice, two sources said.
On Monday, the committee concluded that the European telecom giant was becoming more transparent and helpful in the review process, one source said.


As recently as two weeks ago, city officials were raising concerns about the deal, in particular, whether the heavy debt load would lead to job cuts and poor customer service at Bethpage, LI-based Cablevision, which has more than 3 million customers in the metro area.
While Altice has questioned whether the city even has the legal authority to stop the merger, it has been meeting with city officials all the same.
New York City officials plan to vote on the merger on May 11, while state regulators will follow later that month.
Cablevision shares rose 18 cents, or less than 1 percent, to $33.83, on Tuesday

>>> US After Hours Summary: ETSY +16%, ZG +14%, CRAY -19% following ea


After Hours Summary: ETSY +16%, ZG +14%, CRAY -19% following earnings; MDVN +4% on reports of interest from PFE

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: GKOS +25.8%, NTRI +18%, ETSY +16.1%, ZG +13.5%, LCI +7.8%, PLT +7.7%, XCO +7.4%, MTCH +7.3%, OCLR +6.4%, PAYC +5.8%, DYN +5.4%, RTRX+3.8%, CAR +2.5%, CHUY +2.9%, DVN +2.4%, CBS +2.3%, QUAD +2.2%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: MDVN +3.9% (Reuters report on Pfizer (PFE) interest) , INFN +3.3% (Infinera CEO and CFO purchase shares), FCAU +2.9% (Fiat Chrysler confirms plans to integrate Google's (GOOGL) self-driving technology into 2017 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans), P +1.7% (CFO Michael Herring purchases 50,000 shares at ~$9.2128/share), STX +1.3% (CEO Stephen Luczo purchases 200,000 shares at ~$20.0817/share)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: CRAY -18.5%, GLUU -15%, CALD -10.6%, BGFV -10.1%, RUBI -7.3%, MYGN -6.1%, PZZA -3.5%, WU -3.4%, ILMN -3.1%, FMI -1.4%, USNA -1.3%, CERS -1.1%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: STKL -6.2% (voluntarily recalls a limited number of sunflower kernel products that have the potential to be contaminated with Listeria Monocytogenes), UA -1.4% (announces retirement of Chief Merchandising Officer Henry Stafford, effective July 2016)

Reuters - Exclusive: Pfizer approaches Medivation about potential takeover - sou

Exclusive: Pfizer approaches Medivation about potential takeover - sources http://reut.rs/1QRQBkD

Pfizer Inc (PFE.N) has approached U.S. cancer drug maker Medivation Inc (MDVN.O) to express interest in an acquisition, raising the possibility of a bid rivaling a $9.3 billion offer by Sanofi SA (SASY.PA), people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Pfizer's approach comes less than a week after Sanofi went public with its $52.50 per share cash offer, complaining that Medivation refused to engage. Medivation subsequently rejected the offer as too low. Its shares closed on Tuesday at $57.52.

Medivation has not yet decided whether it should engage with Pfizer in negotiations and is in discussions with its financial and legal advisers, the people said. There is no certainty that Pfizer will press ahead with a bid, they added.

Sanofi currently has no plans to raise its offer and is waiting for Medivation to launch an auction to sell itself before it makes any new bid, some of the people said.

The sources asked not to be identified because the matter is not public. Medivation, Sanofi and Pfizer declined to comment.

Based in San Francisco, Medivation is best known for its oncology drug Xtandi, which treats prostate cancer.

For Pfizer, a deal with Medivation would mark another attempt at building scale in patented drugs after it scrapped its $160 billion acquisition of Dublin-based Allergan Plc (AGN.N) last month.

The breakdown came days after the U.S. Treasury issued new rules that weighed on Pfizer's ability to slash its tax bill by using the deal to redomicile in Ireland.

Earlier on Tuesday, Pfizer Chief Executive Ian Read said in an interview with Reuters that he would consider another merger of any size, as long as the deal makes sense. He did not comment on Medivation.

Sanofi is vying for Medivation in an attempt to expand in the lucrative oncology sector, as it struggles to compensate for declining revenues from a key diabetes drug that recently lost patent protection.

Sanofi's unsolicited approach for Medivation has echoes of its bid for rare disease drug maker Genzyme in 2011. It took Sanofi nine months to overcome Genzyme's resistance. It also offered Genzyme shareholders so-called contingent value rights, which offered them additional payments if the acquired company was able to achieve certain performance milestones.

Using contingent value rights in the case of Medivation may be more challenging for Sanofi, given its lackluster track record in cancer drugs. However, Sanofi has no plans to use contingent value rights in any new offer, according to the sources.