>>> Portugal Telecom asked by CMVM to give shareholders more information before

{Press release attached)
Portugal Telecom asked by CMVM to give shareholders more information before Thursday meeting to approve sale of PT Portugal to Altice

Portugal Telecom (PT) has been informed by the CMVM Portuguese Securities Commission that there is some information lacking for PT shareholders to vote on the sale of PT Portugal to Altice by Oi at a general shareholders' meeting on Thursday (22 January).

In a letter to Antonio Cordeiro, chairman of the PT AGM, the CMVM said PT investors require more information from the PT board over issues raising doubts including the PwC report on the purchase of debt from the Espirito Santo Group, as well as studies on the ending of the PT-Oi Merger.

The CMVM letter to PT is available here, in Portuguese.

Meanwhile, PT issued a subsequent response to the CMVM request for more clarification from the PT board to PT investors before tomorrow's general shareholders' encounter

(BFW) Chinese Fund Interested in Telecom Italia Sparkle: Repubblica

Chinese Fund Interested in Telecom Italia Sparkle: Repubblica
2015-01-21 07:02:56.560 GMT


By Lorenzo Totaro
(Bloomberg) -- Fund expressed interest in unit that owns
Telecom Italia’s long-distance network, la Repubblica reports.
* Possible sale not discussed yet by Telecom Italia board as
managers close to CEO Patuano don’t favor sale to Chinese:
Repubblica
* NOTE: In July state lender Cassa Depositi approved sale of
35% of CDP Reti to State Grid
* NOTE: People’s Bank of China Owns 2.1% of Telecom Italia:
Consob


For Related News and Information:
Top Stories: TOP <GO>
News on Telecom Italia: TIT IM <Equity> CN <GO>

To contact the reporter on this story:
Lorenzo Totaro in Rome at +39-06-45206326 or
ltotaro@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Fergal O’Brien at +44-20-3525-7152 or
fobrien@bloomberg.net

>>> What to look at today - 21st of January 2015

Dow+0,02% S&P +0,15% Nasdaq +0,44% Russell-0,54%
US Market Closed higher helped by NAsdaq but Small cap settled lower, WTI weakness weighted on the sentiment (-4,72% @ $46,39), consumer discretionary (-0.6%) and financials (-0.4%) trailed the broader market throughout the day after MS results, AAPL +2,6% helped the Nasdaq to perform, volume were above average @ 840mil shares...VIX @ 19,89 -5.06%...US After HoursNFLX +16.0%, WWD +12.4%, CREE +6.1%, AM -3.3%, IBKR -1.9%, IBM -1.6% following earnings/guidance...President Obama's State of the Union address delivered more broad strokes on the Democratic agenda, most notably calling for continued diplomacy in Iran, more strikes on ISIS, and fair trade practices in the far east. Domestically, Obama called for free education in community colleges along with reduction in student loans, better countermeasures on cybersecurity, affordable child care, and continued focus on climate change...BOJ keeps policy unchanged, cuts FY15 inflation forecast, On GDP, BOJ lowered the current year target to -0.5% from +0.5% but raised its forecasts for the next two years. Shanghai up strongly on Li comments of maintaining a prudent monetary policy, XU said PBoC may adopt a more trans[arent model of conducting policy.
Nikkei -0.49% Hang Seng+1.67% Shanghai +4.83%

RUB $65.30 RUB €75.61 WTI $46.86 Brent $48.32 CHF 0.8711 EURCHF 1.009

EUR$ 1.1582 S&P +0.04% EuroStoxx +0.25% Dax +0.18% SMI +0.07%

Macro :
- ECB QE Equity Boost to Be Short Amid ’Great Unwinding’: Panmure
- BOJ Keeps Policy Unchanged, Cuts FY2015 Inflation Forecast
- China to Help Russia If Needed, Mofcom Spokesman Says


Keep an eye on :
- AC FP : Accor Raises 2014 Ebit Target, Yr Sales Miss Ests.
- ACS SM : Acs in Talks to Sell 15% Stake in Saeta Unit: El Confidencial
- AENA : Spain’s Aena Airport Operator Valued at EU8.23B: Expansion Says
- AFR LN : Afren Confirms Review of Capital Structure
- ALO FP : Alstom 3Q Sales EU1.5b vs EU1.35b, Rise 10% Organically
- MAERSKB DC : AP Moeller-Maersk May Shut Activities Faster on Oil Price: CEO
- ASML NA : ASML CEO Says First 6 Months of 2015 Look ‘Very Strong’, Plan to buy back €1bil of shares in 2015/16
- BARN SW : Barry Callebaut 1Q Rev. Beats Ests., Confirms Targets
- BNP FP : BNP Paribas Plans Job Cuts at Corporate, Investment Bank: Echos
- EDF FP : EDF to Extend Life of Dungeness Nuclear Plant by 10 Yrs to 2028
- ENI IM : Eni Gets 2 Exploration Licenses in Norway
- GALN VX : Bone Therapeutics Sets IPO Price Range at EU14.50-EU16.50/Shr
- LONN VX : Lonza 2014 Core Ebit CHF475m Versus Estimate CHF473m
- PTC PL : PT Shareholders Still Lack ‘Clarification’ on Some Topics: CMVM
- RDSA NA : HRT Agress to Buy Shell’s Brazil Offshore Fields
- RWE GY : RWE Mulls Dismantling, Shipping Power Plants Overseas: Reuters
- SAP GY : SAP Doesn’t See Large Acquisitions in Near Term: Boersen-Zeitung
- SGSN VX : SGS FY Revenue, Net In Line With Ests., CEO Chris Kirk Resigns
- SPD LN : Sports Direct Founder Ashley Selling 15.4m Shrs via Goldman
- TAP PL : Portugal’s TAP Worth Much More Than EU1b, Lima Tells Renascenca
- TIT IM : Telecom Italia Says It Will Study Options for Media Unit
- FP FP : Total to Reduce Capital Spending by 10% Amid Oil Price Cuts: FT
- UCG IM : UniCredit CEO Ghizzoni Says Aim Is to Announce UCCMB Deal Soon
- VIV FP : Canal Plus Pays EU296m for Top14 Rugby Rights: Les Echos
- WDI GY : Wirecard 4Q Rev. Up 26% to EU176.6m vs EU140.6m, Boosts Forecast
- ZURN VX : Zurich Insurance Won’t Have to Fire People After SNB Move: CEO

>>> Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 21st of January 2015

>>> Up
*ARM RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT CITI
*BAE SYSTEMS RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*CASINO RAISED TO NEUTRAL VS REDUCE AT NOMURA
*CITYCON RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*COMMERZBANK RAISED TO HOLD VS SELL AT BANKHAUS LAMPE
*ENEL GREEN POWER RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*FABEGE RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*FONCIERE DES REGIONS RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*GOLAR RAISED TO BUY FROM HOLD AT NORDEA
*IBERDROLA RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*MERCIALYS RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*RIETER RAISED TO BUY FROM ACCUMULATE AT MIRABAUD
*STMICROELECTRONICS RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT CITI
*STORA ENSO RAISED TO HOLD AT JEFFERIES

>>> Down
*ASML CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT CITI
*AUTONEUM CUT TO ACCUMULATE FROM BUY AT MIRABAUD
*DERWENT LONDON CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT GOLDMAN
*DOMINO’S PIZZA CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT CITI
*DRAX CUT TO NEUTRAL VS CONVICTION BUY AT GOLDMAN
*FREENET CUT TO SELL VS NEUTRAL AT CITI
*FRESENIUS MEDICAL CARE CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT UBS
*FRONTLINE LTD. CUT TO SELL FROM HOLD AT NORDEA
*GAGFAH CUT TO SELL VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*GREAT PORTLAND CUT TO NEUTRAL VS CONVICTION BUY AT GOLDMAN
*IG GROUP CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT UBS
*LEG CUT TO SELL VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*MEDICLINIC CUT TO UNDERWEIGHT VS EQUALWEIGHT AT BARCLAYS
*NORDEX CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT GOLDMAN
*SEGRO CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT GOLDMAN
*SULZER CUT TO NEUTRAL FROM ACCUMULATE AT MIRABAUD
*UNIBAIL-RODAMCO CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT GOLDMAN
*UNITED INTERNET CUT TO SELL VS NEUTRAL AT CITI
*WEIR GROUP CUT TO EQUALWEIGHT VS OVERWEIGHT AT BARCLAYS

>>> PT Changes


>>> Initiation
*AUTOLIV ASSUMED NEUTRAL AT CREDIT SUISSE
*FIRESTONE DIAMONDS RATED NEW SECTOR PERFORM AT RBC
*INDIVIOR RATED NEW EQUALWEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY, PT 180P
*WERELDHAVE REINSTATED SELL AT GOLDMAN

>>> Call
>> Stock
*BENI STABILI ADDED TO CONVICTION BUY LIST AT GOLDMAN

>>> Asian Update

Asian Mid-session Update: BOJ lowers inflation targets, extends low-rate funding scheme; New Zealand CPI falls to 2-year lows

***Economic Data***
- (AU) AUSTRALIA JAN WESTPAC CONSUMER CONFIDENCE INDEX: 93.2 V 91.1 PRIOR; M/M: +2.4% V -5.7% PRIOR
- (NZ) NEW ZEALAND Q4 CPI Q/Q: -0.2% (2-year low) V 0.0%E; Y/Y: 0.8% (6-quarter low) V 0.9%E
- (MY) MALAYSIA DEC CPI Y/Y: 2.7% V 2.8%E

***Index Snapshot (as of 03:30 GMT)***
- Nikkei225 -0.8%, S&P/ASX +1.3%, Kospi -0.2%, Shanghai Composite +2.2%, Hang Seng +1.2%, Mar S&P500 flat at 2,016

***Commodities/Fixed Income***
- Feb gold +0.2% at $1,296, Mar crude oil +1.0% at $46.94/brl, Mar Copper -0.4% at $2.58/lb
- GLD: SPDR Gold Trust ETF daily holdings rise 11.3 tonnes to 742.2 tonnes; highest since Oct 29th
- (CN) China Ministry of Finance (MOF) sells 7-yr bonds at 3.3579%
- (CN) PBoC sets yuan mid point at 6.1268 v 6.1226 prior setting (weakest Yuan setting since Jan 9th)
- (AU) Australia MoF (AOFM) sells A$700M in 4.5% bonds due 2033, avg yield 2.9281%, bid-to-cover: 1.879x

***Market Focal Points/Key Themes/FX***
- USD/JPY hit its lows below ¥117.70 in the wake of the BOJ decision, falling by as much as 100pips from session highs and also sending Tokyo stocks down by nearly 1% in spite of an equity rally elsewhere in Asia. As anticipated, the BOJ maintained its key policy stance of ¥80T annual monetary base increase, while also extending its low-rate funding scheme by a year and boosting provision to each institution from ¥1T to ¥2T. Moreover, BOJ maintained its overall economic assessment but upgraded its view on industrial output to state it has bottomed. On inflation, BOJ lowered FY14/15 and FY15/16 projections by 0.3pts and 0.7% respectively to 0.9% and 1.0%; On GDP, BOJ lowered the current year target to -0.5% from +0.5% but raised its forecasts for the next two years. Despite inflation downgrade - primarily attributed to lower oil prices - the BOJ maintained its commitment to achieving its 2% target.

- Shanghai Composite is up for the 2nd straight day, now erasing about half of the sharp decline on Monday attributed securities brokers' margin account jitters. China Premier Li pledged to maintain a "prudent" monetary policy, noting economic fundamentals have not changed despite the 2014 GDP falling to 24-year lows. ANZ economist pointed to improvement in services sector, adding 7% GDP is likely to be tolerated as authorities rebalance the economy. State Information Center researcher Xu also said PBoC may adopt a more transparent model of conducting policy. Looking ahead to 2015, MOFCOM warned external challenges present a headwind to China on the trade front.

- NZD/USD fell to a 2-week lows below 0.7630 after Q4 CPI fell q/q for the first time in 2 years. ASB economists have also given up on expectations for further RBNZ policy tightening late in 2015, while Fin Min English noted wage increases would likely be smaller than expected. Australia Westpac Consumer Confidence rebounded from a 2-year low, even though resident economist reiterated RBA would likely cut rates next month. BHP was up about 2% after quarterly production report that expressed some added focus on cost containment, even though iron ore output rose 16% y/y and production guidance for the metal - along with copper, crude, and coal - were maintained.

- President Obama's State of the Union address delivered more broad strokes on the Democratic agenda, most notably calling for continued diplomacy in Iran, more strikes on ISIS, and fair trade practices in the far east. Domestically, Obama called for free education in community colleges along with reduction in student loans, better countermeasures on cybersecurity, affordable child care, and continued focus on climate change.


***Equities***
US markets:
- NFLX: Reports Q4 $0.72 adj v $0.44e, R$1.48B v $1.49Be; +16.0% afterhours
- WWD: Reports Q1 $0.66 v $0.47e, R$487.6M v $451Me; +12.4% afterhours
- CREE: Reports Q2 $0.33 v $0.22e, R$413.2M v $419Me; +6.0% afterhours
- NSP: Starboard Value discloses 13.2% stake; urges management to consider selling the company - 13D filing; +5.9% afterhours
- SMCI: Reports Q2 $0.65 v $0.47e, R$503M v $468Me; +5.1% afterhours
- DAN: To be added to S&P400 index after the close of trading on Jan 22nd; +3.2% afterhours
- AMD: Reports Q4 $0.00 v $0.01e, R$1.24B v $1.24Be; flat afterhours
- AR: Announces initial 2015 capital budget of $1.8B, -41% y/y; -0.5% afterhours
- IBKR: Reports Q4 $0.12 v $0.05e, R$229.9M v $262Me; -1.2% afterhours
- CA: Reports Q3 $0.67 v $0.60e, R$1.09B v $1.10Be; -1.4% afterhours
- NSLP: Guides FY15 EBITDA margin at 21-25%; production at 3,750-3,950 bpd; -1.5% afterhours
- IBM: Reports Q4 $5.81 (adj) v $5.41e, R$24.1B v $24.7Be; Guides FY15 $15.75-16.50 v $16.49e [*Note: in Oct, withdrew long term roadmap goal for 2015 EPS to rise to "at least $20"] - conf call slides; -1.9% afterhours

Notable movers by sector:
- Consumer Discretionary: Liaoning Shidai Wanheng 600241.CN +10.0% (plans acquisition); Guangdong Alpha Animation and Culture 002292.CN +4.3% (proposes special dividend); Jiangling Motors Corp 000550.CN +3.3% (FY14 results)
- Financials: Shenzhen World Union Properties Consultancy 002285.CN +7.2% (FY14 guidance); Sinotex Investment & Development 600061.CN +3.2% (Essence Securities reports 2014 results)
- Materials: BHP Billiton BHP.AU +1.8% (Q2 production results); Alacer Gold AQG.AU -2.4% (Q4 production results); Western Areas WSA.AU +3.2% (H1 production results); Saracen Mineral Holdings SAR.AU +14.1% (Q2 production results)
- Industrials: Keda Group 600986.CN +10.1% (announces acquisitions); CNR 601299.CN +4.1%, CSR 601766.CN +4.5% (combined company reports Jan-Oct results); BYD Corp 1211.HK +2.5% (issues FY15 EV taxis target); Boral Ltd BLD.AU +1.9% (to sell hardwood timber business); Furukawa Electric 5801.JP -2.6% (press speculation on 9-month results)
- Technology: Sharp 6753.JP -2.2% (to take pay cut); TDK Corp 6762.JP -2.8% (press speculation on 9-month results)

>>> US After Hours Summary: NFLX +16.0%, WWD +12.4%, CREE +6.1%, AM -3

After Hours Summary: NFLX +16.0%, WWD +12.4%, CREE +6.1%, AM -3.3%, IBKR -1.9%, IBM -1.6% following earnings/guidance

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings: NFLX +16.0%, WWD +12.4%, CREE +6.1%, SMCI +1.6%, CLS +0.7%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: RLH +3.2% (announced formation of a joint venture; refinanced debt to accelerate execution of national growth strategy), DAN +3.1% (to replace CBST in the S&P MidCap 400), CALL +2.8% (announced that it is in beta testing on two APPs in the U.S. and Mexico, respectively), NSP +1.8% (Starboard Value disclosed 13.2% active stake in 13D filing; suggests that co should consider share repurchases and explore a potential sale in letter to Board), ADHD +1.7% (Great Point Partners disclosed 5.6% passive stake in 13G filing), TKMR +1.7% (RA Capital Management discloses 9.9% passive stake in 13G filing)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings: AM -3.3%, IBKR -1.9%, IBM -1.6%, NSLP -1.5%, CA -1.4%, AMD -0.9%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: ARNA -6.8% (announced it intends to offer and sell shares of its common stock; all shares offered by Arena, details not yet disclosed), KERX -3.5% (announced it has commenced a $100 mln underwritten public offering of shares of its common stock), PBYI -3.2% (announced it is commencing a public offering of 1 mln shares of its common stock; terms not disclosed), SYRG -3.0% (provided operations update and updated fiscal second quarter production guidance; co's second fiscal quarter production is running below expectations due to a delay in completions by other operators), NERV -2.6% (announced $15 million debt facility with Oxford Finance LLC and Silicon Valley Bank),  

>>> Netflix beats by $0.28, reports revs in-line--> +12% @$390

Netflix beats by $0.28, reports revs in-line; Sees GLobal Expansion Finishing Earlier than Expected; Expects to raise 'at least' $1 bln in debt

Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.72 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.28 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.44; revenues rose 26.4% year/year to $1.49 bln vs the $1.49 bln consensus. Please see 16:08 for additional metrics.
Key Excerpts from Newsletter:
- "In October, we judged the leading factor of the similar decline in Q3 y/y net adds to be our May price change. Since then, with additional research, we now think that the decline in y/y net adds would have largely taken place independent of the price change. We've found our growth in net adds is strongest in the lower income areas of the US, which would not be the case if there was material price sensitivity. We think, instead, the reduction in y/y net additions is a natural progression in our large US market as we grow".
- "This year we plan to increase US contribution margins from 30% in Q1 to about 32% in Q1 2016 to about 34% in Q1 2017, etc. We'll re-evaluate the margin progression model again in early 2020 when we hopefully achieve 40% contribution margins".
- "In late Q1, we'll be launching Netflix in Australia and New Zealand. Later in the year, we'll launch additional major countries, in keeping with our global strategy".
- "Progress has been so strong that we now believe we can complete our global expansion over the next two years, while staying profitable, which is earlier than we expected. We then intend to generate material global profits from 2017 onwards".
- "For China, we are still exploring options — all of them modest. We'll learn a great deal if we can successfully operate a small service in China centered on our original and other globally-licensed content. That is our preference, for the next few years, if we are able to acquire the necessary permissions".
- "We finished the quarter with $1.6 billion in cash and equivalents. Given we are investing faster in content (this Q1 will show a step up in cash use with all the original projects launching in the quarter) and the current favorable interest rate environment, we intend to raise at least a billion dollars, pending market conditions, of additional long-term debt in a similar manner to last year".

>>>Cree beats by $0.11, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS in-line, revs in-lin

Cree beats by $0.11, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS in-line, revs in-line --> +5,5%

Reports Q2 (Dec) earnings of $0.33 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.11 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.22; revenues fell 0.5% year/year to $413.2 mln vs the $412.08 mln consensus.

- Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.21-0.25, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.21 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees Q3 revs of $395-415 mln vs. $406.57 mln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.
- "We made solid progress in Q2 with operating margin higher than targeted due to an improvement in gross margins in our lighting business," stated Chuck Swoboda, Cree Chairman and CEO. "The market for LED lighting is still in the early stages, our new product pipeline is strong, sales momentum is building and our brand is growing in the market. As evidenced by our significant share repurchases in Q2, we believe we are on the right track to continue to grow the company and increase profits over the next several years."