Market Update
Europe Movers: Beiersdorf, Deutsche Bank, Dassault Systemes, Essentra, Kering, Reckitt Benckiser, Worldline
Inga Muller
25 Oct, 2023
Frankfurt
European market indexes lacked direction ahead of interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank on Thursday.
The DAX index decreased 0.2% to 14,855.62, the CAC-40 index fell 0.3% to 6,875.12, and the FTSE 100 index eased 0.1% to 7,383.05.
The yield on 10-yetrar German bonds increased to 2.85%, French bonds traded higher to 3.49%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.57%, and Italian bonds inched higher to 4.89%.
Deutsche Bank AG increased 6.5% to €10.12 after the German bank posted better-than-expected third-quarter results.
Revenue in the third quarter increased 3% to €7.13 billion from €6.92 billion, and profit attributable to shareholders declined 8% to €1.03 billion from €1.12 billion.
Provision for credit losses dropped 30% to 245 million from 350 million, and the bank confirmed provision for the full year to be near the upper end of its previously estimated range of between 25 and 30 basis points.
Deutsche Bank forecasted full-year 2023 revenue of around €29 billion, higher than €27.2 billion in 2022.
The bank also announced its plans to launch its stock repurchase plan and pay dividends.
Worldline SA plunged 57% to €9.78 after the French payment services provider lowered its full-year growth estimate.
The payment services provider added that it has severed relationships with several merchants "in light of the increase in cybercrime."
The company lowered its organic sales growth for 2023 to between 6% and 7% from the previous estimate of between 8% and 10%.
Worldline also forecasted the 2023 operating margin before depreciation and amortization to decline 150 basis points from the previous estimate of an increase of 100 basis points.
Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc declined 4.9% to 5,628.0 pence after the household products maker reported weaker-than-expected comparable sales in the third quarter.
Revenue in the third quarter declined 3.6% to £3.6 billion, and comparable sales increased 3.4%.
Higher prices are impacting sales volume as consumers look for alternative products or brands.
The revenue increase in the quarter was driven by a 1.6% decline in volume and a 7.5% jump in price increases passed to consumers.
The company forecasted comparable sales growth for the full year 2023 in the range of 3% to 5%.
Beiersdorf AG added 1.4% to €123.80 after the maker of Nivea-branded household products raised its full-year sales estimate.
The company said revenue in the first nine months ending in September increased 7.8% to €7.3 billion, followed by a 17.5% jump in sales in Nivea and a 24.8% increase in Derma, offsetting a 15.8% decline in skin-care and anti-aging brand La Prairie.
Beiersdorf raised its guidance for the consumer business segment for the full year to "low-double-digit organic sales growth" and confirmed its forecast for an EBIT margin excluding special factors at +50 basis points higher than in the previous year.
Essentra Plc decreased 4.5% to 141.20 pence after the maker of essential products forecasted full-year adjusted profit near the low end of its estimate.
Dassault Systemes SE rose 8.3% to €37.86 after the French software developer raised its annual profit outlook.
Kering SA fell 3.6% to €394.15 after the luxury products maker reported a decline in revenue in the third quarter.
Fresnillo Plc eased 0.9% to 524.80 pence after the precious metals miner reported a decline in gold and silver output.
European Markets Steady Amid Mixed Quarterly Earnings
Bridgette Randall
25 Oct, 2023
Frankfurt
European markets hovered near the flatline, and earnings releases picked up pace.
Benchmark indexes in Paris and Frankfurt lacked direction, and the index in London hovered near the flatline after resource stocks edged higher.
The European Central Bank is set to announce its rate decisions on Thursday, and investors are anticipating policymakers to leave rates unchanged.
Crude oil prices lacked direction in nervous trading, and Israel stepped up its bombing campaign ahead of its ground invasion of Gaza.
The Gaza health ministry said at least 700 people, mostly civilians, were killed in an overnight bombing raid.
United Nations Security Council Secretary General Antonio Guterres called for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire."
Guterres called the attack and kidnapping rampage on October 7 carried out by Hamas "appalling" and stressed that it “cannot justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people. Excellencies, even war has rules.”
Israeli officials expressed their outrage in social media posts, and Israel's representative to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said Israel will refuse visas to United Nations officials, according to Israeli media.
Europe Indexes and Yields
The DAX index decreased 0.2% to 14,855.62, the CAC-40 index fell 0.3% to 6,875.12, and the FTSE 100 index eased 0.1% to 7,383.05.
The yield on 10-yetrar German bonds increased to 2.85%, French bonds traded higher to 3.49%, the UK gilts edged up to 4.57%, and Italian bonds inched higher to 4.89%.
The euro hovered near a three-month low at $1.05, the British pound at $1.21, and the U.S. dollar at 89.62 Swiss cents.
Brent crude increased $0.17 to $88.25 a barrel, and the Dutch TTF natural gas edged lower by €0.37 to €48.89 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
Deutsche Bank AG increased 6.5% to €10.12 after the German bank posted better-than-expected third-quarter results.
The bank also announced its plans to launch its stock repurchase plan and pay dividends.
Worldline SA plunged 57% to €9.78 after the French payment services provider lowered its full-year growth estimate.
The payment services provider added that it has severed relationships with several merchants "in light of the increase in cybercrime."
The company lowered its organic sales growth for 2023 to between 6% and 7% from the previous estimate of between 8% and 10%.
Worldline also forecasted the 2023 operating margin before depreciation and amortization to decline 150 basis points from the previous estimate of an increase of 100 basis points.
Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc declined 4.9% to 5,628.0 pence after the household products maker reported weaker-than-expected comparable sales in the third quarter.
Beiersdorf AG added 1.4% to €123.80 after the maker of Nivea-branded household products raised its full-year sales estimate.
Essentra Plc decreased 4.5% to 141.20 pence after the maker of essential products forecasted full-year adjusted profit near the low end of its estimate.
Dassault Systemes SE rose 8.3% to €37.86 after the French software developer raised its annual profit outlook.
Kering SA fell 3.6% to €394.15 after the luxury products maker reported a decline in revenue in the third quarter.
Fresnillo Plc eased 0.9% to 524.80 pence after the precious metals miner reported a decline in gold and silver output.
With Earnings In Focus, U.S. Market Indexes Closed Higher
Barry Adams
24 Oct, 2023
New York City
Investors bid up stocks after Treasury yields stabilized and positive earnings reports bolstered market sentiment.
Market sentiment improved after Verizon, Coca-Cola, and General Electric reported better-than-expected earnings, and after the bell, investors awaited earnings from Microsoft and Alphabet.
However, analysts are cautioning that big tech stocks reflect euphoric valuations despite the recent decline in the last three months, and stock valuations leave little room for disappointment.
Benchmark indexes edged jumped as much as 1% on earnings optimism and hopes that bond yields may trend lower amid rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Investors are adjusting their expectations of U.S. economic growth, but the interest rate outlook remains uncertain.
The Federal Reserve began its aggressive rate hike campaign 18 months ago after keeping rates near zero for 15 years after policymakers were caught off-guard following pandemic-era supply chain disruptions coupled with the Fed's rapid expansion of its balance sheet by $4 trillion.
Moreover, despite the end of pandemic-era supply chain disruptions, the Federal Reserve is supporting the surge in the annual budget deficit, which reached $1.7 trillion in the fiscal year 2023 ending in September.
Despite the multiple interest rate hikes, inflation has cooled but not dropped to the target rate of 2%, and the latest comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Powell suggest that policymakers are less likely to increase rates at the next meeting, but higher rates may be needed through 2024.
U.S. Indexes and Yields
The S&P 500 index increased 0.8% to 4,252.43, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.0% to 13,147.32.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes increased to 5.09%, 10-year Treasury notes inched higher to 4.88%, and 30-year Treasury bonds edged up to 5.0%.
Crude oil decreased $1.55 to $83.93 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged up 7 cents to $2.99 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged higher to 106.19, the level last seen in November 2022, and extended gains from the low of 99.85 on July 13, 2023.
U.S. Stock Movers
Coca-Cola Company jumped 2.8% to $55.63 after the beverage company reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and lifted its annual outlook as the company sold more cases of beverages.
General Motors Company rose 0.3% to $29.29 after the vehicle maker reported rising sales and earnings in the third quarter, but the automaker also pulled its annual earnings outlook, citing the ongoing United Auto Workers strike.
Revenue in the third quarter increased 5.4% to $41.89 billion, net income edged lower to $3.06 billion from $3.31 billion, and diluted earnings per share eased to $2.20 from $2.25 a year ago.
The company also withdrew its previously issued adjusted annual earnings outlook between $12 billion and $14 billion and net income attributable to shareholders between $9.3 billion and $10.7 billion.
Tesla Inc. rose 1.8% to $215.91, and the company said in a regulatory filing that it is facing several investigations from the Department of Justice covering a range of electric vehicles, "personal benefits and related parties and personnel decisions," and other issues involving its operations.
RTX Corp. soared 5.9% to $77.48 after the aerospace company reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in its latest quarterly results.
Spotify Technology SA jumped 7.2% to $165.10 after the audio streaming company reported third-quarter revenue that met investors' expectations, and the company said monthly active subscribers are expected to top 600 million in the fourth quarter.
European Markets Closed Up and Bond Yields Edged Lower
European markets turned higher after bond yields edged lower as investors reviewed regional economic data.
Benchmark indexes in Paris and Frankfurt advanced, but indexes in London lacked direction.
The Eurozone output contracted the most in nearly three years, according to the latest data compiled by S&P.
The HCOB Eurozone Composite PMI fell to 46.5 in October from 47.2 in September, the fifth monthly decline in a row in business activities.
Activities in both the manufacturing and service sectors declined, and the fall in activities was the steepest since November 2020 and sharpest since March 2013, when pandemic-era disruptions were excluded.
New orders declined the most since May 2020, and backlogs of orders eased at the fastest pace since June 2020.
Separate reports showed a mixed economic picture in the UK and Germany.
German consumer confidence declined for a third month in a row in November, and the UK's private sector activity contracted for the third month in a row, and the adjusted jobless rate edged up.
The adjusted unemployment rate for the three months to August increased to 4.2%, following a 4.0% rate in the previous three months ending in May, the Office for National Statistics reported Tuesday.
The adjusted employment rate decreased by 0.3 percentage points to 75.7%, and economic inactivity edged up 0.1 percentage point to 20.9%, as the report highlighted.
Last week, the statistical agency reported that the average earnings growth in the three months to August in the UK eased slightly to 8.1% from 8.5% in the previous period, but the increase was still one of the largest gains since record-keeping began in 2001.
Europe Indexes and Yields
The DAX index increased 0.5% to 14,879.94, the CAC-40 index rose 0.6% to 6,893.65, and the FTSE 100 index added 0.2% to 7,389.70.
The yield on 10-yetrar German bonds decreased to 2.81%, French bonds traded lower to 3.43%, the UK gilts edged down to 4.56%, and Italian bonds eased to 4.81%.
The euro hovered near a three-month low at $1.06, the British pound at $1.22, and the U.S. dollar at 89.34 Swiss cents.
Brent crude decreased $1.80 to $88.02 a barrel, and the Dutch TTF natural gas edged higher by €2.02 to €49.26 per MWh.
Europe Stock Movers
UniCredit SpA increased 1.3% to €22.99, and the Italian bank reported third-quarter earnings that were ahead of market expectations.
Logitech International SA increased 7.7% to CHF 66.22 after the Swiss computer accessories maker revised higher its annual outlook.
Anglo American, Glencore, and Antofagasta advanced between 0.6% and 0.9% after the U.S. dollar weakened and base metal prices edged higher.
Barclays Plc declined 6.5% to 135.22 pence after the U.K.-based lender warned that the financial services provider is facing margin pressures, and the bank said it plans to accelerate its plan to cut costs later in the year.
Lloyds Banking Group declined 1.9% to 40.66 pence, and NatWest Group Plc dropped 2.2% to 210.20 pence.
Puma SE soared 3.8% to €52.76 after the German sportswear maker reiterated its full-year outlook.
Hermes International SCA advanced 2.3% to €1,720.60 after the luxury goods maker reported third-quarter sales that were ahead of the market's expectations.
Bunzl Plc fell 3.8% to 2,802.0 pence after the distribution services provider said third-quarter revenue declined 4.8% at constant currency exchange rates.
"We reiterate our confidence in the group’s 2023 adjusted operating profit being moderately higher than in 2022 at constant exchange rates.
We expect Group revenue, at constant exchange rates, to be slightly lower than in 2022, with the benefit of announced acquisitions offset by some organic decline, following strong organic growth in recent years, and a small impact from UK healthcare disposal.
The operating margin in 2023 is now expected to reach the record level seen in recent years," the company said in an update to investors released Tuesday.
U.S. Movers: Coca-Cola, Corning, General Electric, General Motors, Halliburton, Mueller Industries, PacWest Bancorp, NVR, RTX, Spotify, Tesla
Scott Peters
24 Oct, 2023
New York City
Benchmark indexes advanced after positive earnings, and stable Treasury yields supported a rebound in market indexes for the second day in a row.
The S&P 500 index increased 0.7% to 4,245.11, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8% to 13,120.29.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes increased to 5.09%, 10-year Treasury notes inched higher to 4.88%, and 30-year Treasury bonds edged up to 5.0%.
The Coca-Cola Company jumped 2.8% to $55.63 after the beverage company reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and lifted its annual outlook as the company sold more cases of beverages.
Revenue in the third quarter increased 8% to $11.95 billion from $11.1 billion, net income advanced 9% to $3.1 billion from $2.8 billion, and diluted earnings per share rose to 71 cents from 65 cents a year ago.
Unit case volume increased 2% from a year ago, and price and product mix jumped 9%, driving comparable sales by 8% in the quarter.
General Electric Company increased 7.4% to $114.47 after the engineering and healthcare company reported stronger-than-expected third quarter earnings.
Revenue in the third quarter rose 20% to $17.4 billion from $14.5 billion, driven primarily by increases in the aerospace and renewable energy segments.
GE Aerospace orders rose 34% and revenue jumped 25%, led by commercial engines and services, and defense orders rose 8%.
Renewable energy segment revenue rose 14%, driving revenue growth at GE Vernova.
Net income attributable to shareholders increased to $258 million from $88 million, and diluted earnings per share rose to 24 cents from 8 cents a year ago.
General Electric is set to trade as two independent companies, GE Aerospace and GE Vernova, in the second quarter of 2024.
General Motors Company rose 0.3% to $29.29 after the vehicle maker reported rising sales and earnings in the third quarter, but the automaker also pulled its annual earnings outlook, citing the ongoing United Auto Workers strike.
Revenue in the third quarter increased 5.4% to $41.89 billion, net income edged lower to $3.06 billion from $3.31 billion, and diluted earnings per share eased to $2.20 from $2.25 a year ago.
The company also withdrew its previously issued adjusted annual earnings outlook between $12 billion and $14 billion and net income attributable to shareholders between $9.3 billion and $10.7 billion.
Tesla Inc. rose 1.8% to $215.91, and the company said in a regulatory filing that it is facing several investigations from the Department of Justice covering a range of electric vehicles, "personal benefits and related parties and personnel decisions," and other issues involving its operations.
RTX Corp. soared 5.9% to $77.48 after the aerospace company reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in its latest quarterly results.
Revenue in the third quarter declined 21% to $13.5 billion from $17 billion, and the company swung to a net loss of $984 million from a profit of $1.4 billion, and diluted earnings per share dropped to ($0.68) from 94 cents a year ago.
The backlog at the end of the third quarter was $190 billion, of which $115 billion was from commercial aerospace and $75 billion was from defense contracts.
The board of directors approved a $10 billion accelerated stock repurchase program scheduled to begin immediately, resulting in a post-merger shareholder return commitment of between $36 billion and $37 billion through 2025, up from the previous range of between $33 billion and $35 billion.
Spotify Technology SA jumped 7.2% to $165.10 after the audio streaming company reported third-quarter revenue that met investors' expectations, and the company said monthly active subscribers are expected to top 600 million in the fourth quarter.
Mueller Industries increased 2.2% to $35.85 after the company reported its latest quarterly results.
Revenue in the third quarter declined to $819.8 million from $944.8 million, reflecting lower demand in the wholesale channel as distributors worked through inventories of products used in residential construction.
Net income declined to $132.7 million from $154.5 million, and diluted earnings per share fell to $1.17 from $1.37 a year ago, reflecting a two-for-one stock split effective October 20.
NVR Inc. declined 2.6% to $5,362.0 after the home builder reported a decline in revenue in the third quarter.
Consolidated revenue declined 7% to $2.57 billion from $2.85 billion, net income rose to $432.2 million from $411.4 million, and diluted earnings per share advanced to $125.56 from $118.51 a year ago.
New home orders in the third quarter increased by 7% to 4,746 units from 4,421 units, and the average sales price of new orders increased by 1% to $456,100 a year ago.
The cancellation rate decreased to 14% in the third quarter from 15% a year ago.
The average home settlement price declined 3% to $448,000, and the backlog of homes sold but not settled dropped on a unit basis by 4% to 10,371 units and eased on a dollar basis by 6% to $4.8 billion from a year ago.
Halliburton Company fell 2.4% to $40.67 after the company reported strong quarter results driven by higher demand for oil drilling services.
Revenue in the third quarter increased to $5.8 billion from $5.3 billion, net income advanced to $724 million from $549 million, and diluted earnings per share rose to 79 cents from 60 cents a year ago.
Oil well completion and production revenue in the quarter was sequentially flat at $3.5 billion, and drilling and evaluation service revenue was sequentially flat at $2.3 billion.
North American revenue sequentially declined 3% to $2.6 billion, but international revenue sequentially rose 3% to $3.2 billion.
PacWest Bancorp declined 6.2% to $6.85 after the regional bank reported mixed quarterly results.
Total interest income increased to $446 million from $410 million, the company swung to a net loss of $33.3 million from a profit of $122 million, and diluted earnings per share dropped to ($0.28) from $1.02 a year ago.
Interest-bearing deposits increased 1% to 79%, or $26.6 billion, and cost-on-average deposits increased to 2.98% from 2.62% in the previous quarter, respectively.
At the end of the quarter, FDIC-insured deposits represented 81% of total deposits.
Total borrowings at the end of the quarter were $6.29 billion with a weighted average rate of 5.43%, reflecting $4.9 billion borrowed under the Bank Term Funding Program with a rate of 4.38%.
Securities held-for-sale declined to $4.48 billion from $5.89 billion, and securities held-to-maturity edged up to $2.28 billion from $2.26 billion a year ago.
S&P 500, Nasdaq Jump 1% On Strong Earnings and Stable Treasury Yields
Barry Adams
24 Oct, 2023
New York City
Stocks on Wall Street advanced after investors reviewed the latest batch of strong earnings, and Treasury yields hovered near 16-year highs.
Market sentiment improved in early trading after Verizon, Coca-Cola, and General Electric reported better-than-expected earnings.
Benchmark indexes edged more than 0.6% on earnings optimism and hopes that bond yields may trend lower amid rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Investors are adjusting their expectations of U.S. economic growth, but the interest rate outlook remains uncertain.
The Federal Reserve began its aggressive rate hike campaign 18 months ago after keeping rates near zero for 15 years after policymakers were caught off-guard following pandemic-era supply chain disruptions coupled with the Fed's rapid expansion of its balance sheet by $4 trillion.
Moreover, despite the end of pandemic-era supply chain disruptions, the Federal Reserve is supporting the surge in the annual budget deficit, which reached $1.7 trillion in the fiscal year 2023 ending in September.
Despite the multiple interest rate hikes, inflation has cooled but not dropped to the target rate of 2%, and the latest comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Powell suggest that policymakers are less likely to increase rates at the next meeting, but higher rates may be needed through 2024.
U.S. Indexes and Yields
The S&P 500 index increased 0.7% to 4,245.11, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.8% to 13,120.29.
The yield on 2-year Treasury notes increased to 5.09%, 10-year Treasury notes inched higher to 4.88%, and 30-year Treasury bonds edged up to 5.0%.
Crude oil decreased $0.78 to $84.76 a barrel, and natural gas prices edged up 1 cent to $2.93 a thermal unit.
The dollar index edged higher to 106.19, the level last seen in November 2022, and extended gains from the low of 99.85 on July 13, 2023.
U.S. Stock Movers
Coca-Cola Company jumped 2.8% to $55.63 after the beverage company reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings and lifted its annual outlook as the company sold more cases of beverages.
General Motors Company rose 0.3% to $29.29 after the vehicle maker reported rising sales and earnings in the third quarter, but the automaker also pulled its annual earnings outlook, citing the ongoing United Auto Workers strike.
Revenue in the third quarter increased 5.4% to $41.89 billion, net income edged lower to $3.06 billion from $3.31 billion, and diluted earnings per share eased to $2.20 from $2.25 a year ago.
The company also withdrew its previously issued adjusted annual earnings outlook between $12 billion and $14 billion and net income attributable to shareholders between $9.3 billion and $10.7 billion.
Tesla Inc. rose 1.8% to $215.91, and the company said in a regulatory filing that it is facing several investigations from the Department of Justice covering a range of electric vehicles, "personal benefits and related parties and personnel decisions," and other issues involving its operations.
RTX Corp. soared 5.9% to $77.48 after the aerospace company reported better-than-expected revenue and earnings in its latest quarterly results.
Spotify Technology SA jumped 7.2% to $165.10 after the audio streaming company reported third-quarter revenue that met investors' expectations, and the company said monthly active subscribers are expected to top 600 million in the fourth quarter.