Europe Earnings: Essar Energy, Fidessa, Hammerson, MorphoSys, SGL

Nigel Thomas
17 Feb, 2014
New York City

Essar Energy received takeover offer worth

[R]3:40 PM Frankfurt – Essar Energy received takeover offer worth £900 million. Fidessa net jumped 5%. Hammerson profit in the year soared £262.6 million. MorphoSys received a milestone payment from Novartis for clinical trials. SGL Carbon and BMW plan to invest €100 million to double the production.[/R]

In London trading, FTSE 100 index climbed 1.2% or 79.80 to 6,743.42 and in Frankfurt the DAX index rose 0.1% or 8.33 to 9,670.73.

In Paris, CAC 40 index fell 0.04% or 1.91 to 4,338.23.

Essar Energy Plc soared 5.4% to 69.53 pence after the India-based energy company received 70 pence per share takeover offer from its majority owner Essar Global Fund worth about £900 million or $1.51 billion.

Fidessa Group Plc gained 1.2% to 2,348 pence after the U.K-based multi-asset trading software company said revenue in the year ending in December rose 1% to £279.02 million from £278.63 million a year ago.

Profit in the year jumped 4.6% to £31.82 million compared to £30.41 million and earnings per share climbed to 83.5 pence from 80.9 pence a year earlier.

Hammerson Plc climbed 3.3% to 561.50 pence after the U.K-based real estate investment company reported revenues in the year ending in December surged to £231.4 million from £61.9 million a year earlier.

Profit in the year soared £262.6 million compared to £91.6 million a year ago, largely on the valuation increase across real estate portfolio.

Adjusted pre-tax profit totaled £168.9 million from £152.5 million a year ago period and gross rental income jumped to £321.2 million from £297.6 million a year ago.

MorphoSys AG jumped 2.9% to €65.35 after the Germany-based biotechnology company received a milestone payment from Switzerland-based Novartis AG for the clinical trial application of anti-inflammatory treatment.

SGL Carbon SE surged 12% to €30.53 after the German newspaper Handelsblatt reported German car maker BMW and the company plan to invest more than €100 million to double the joint production of carbon fiber with a capacity of 3,000 tons to 6,000 metric tons per year.