Earnings: EBay, Allstate, Kraft, Money Gram

123jump.com Staff
18 Apr, 2007
New York City

EBay reported 52% rise in earnings on 27% gains in revenue. The stock jumped 6% in the after hours of trading. Kraft Food reported 6% rise in revenue but diluted earnings fell 30%. Money Gram earnings dropped on higher operating cost. Spansion loss widened. ETrade Financial lowered earnings guidance for the year. Novellus revenue declined.

[R]5:30PM NY – Earnings releases after the market close in NY.[/R]

Knight Transportation ((KNI)) reported revenue rise of 11.7% to $166.5 million and net income growth of 5% to $16.6 million. Earnings per share rose 19 cents from 18 cents a year ago.

Money Gram International ((MGI)) revenue in the first quarter rose 17.6% but net income in the quarter fell 2.8%. The company reported earnings per share of 35 cents vs. 36 cents a year ago.

Alliance Data Systems ((ADS)) revenue in the first quarter rose 15% to $549 million and net income gained 1% to $56.9 million. The earnings per share was reported at 70 cents vs. 69 cents a year ago.

Arena Pharmaceuticals ((ARNA)) reported first quarter revenue of $4.9 million compared to $12.1 million a year ago. The net loss increased to $32.7 million from $12.4 million a year ago.

Illinois Tool Works ((ITW)) revenue in the first quarter rose 14% to $3.76 billion and earnings gained 10% to 70 cents per share or $568 million.

Spansion ((SPSN)), semiconductor maker, reported first quarter revenue of $628 million or 12% from a year ago and 8.7% from the previous quarter. The company reported net loss of $75 million or 56 cents per share compared to 40 cents loss a year ago.


E*Trade Financial ((ETFC)) reported first quarter earnings of 39 cents vs. 33 cents a year ago. The revenue in the quarter was reported at $645 million compared to $598.3 million a year ago. The company lowered the annual earnings guidance between $1.55 and $1.75 per share.


Kraft Foods ((KF)) first quarter revenue rose 5.7% to $8.6 billion but diluted earnings per share declined to 30% to 43 cents from a year ago. The company expects the fully diluted annual earnings per share to rise between 3% and 4% to a range of $1.50 and $1.55.

All State ((ALL)), insurance company reported first quarter revenue growth of 3% to $9.33 billion and earnings rise of 5% to $1.49 billion or $2.39 per share. Auto premium revenue gained 2.5% but homeowners property premium declined 5.8%.

Novellus Systems ((NVLS)) reported first quarter revenue of $397 million, down 9.5%. Net income in the quarter was $53.8 million or 42 cents per share, up 26% from a year ago.

Netflix ((NFLX)) reported first quarter earnings of $9.9 million or 14 cents, double from a year ago. The revenue in the quarter was recorded at $305 million an increase of 36%. The company now forecasts total subscriber base between $7.3 million and 7.8 million, down from earlier forecast of 8 million to 8.4 million. The stock declined 12%.

eBay ((EBAY)) reported first quarter revenue rose 27% and earnings increased 52%. The company reported revenue of $1.77 billion from $1.39 billion and earnings of $377 million or 27 cents per share compared to $248 million or 17 cents per share. The company lifted annual earnings guidance to $1.30/$1.34 from $1.27/$1.34 per share.


[R]4:30PM NY; 11:30PM Frankfurt; 2:00AM Mumbai - GLOBAL MARKETS[/R]

Financial stocks led a mild advance in New York trading. Oil and gold are increasingly becoming focus of traders. Ebay reported 52% rise in earnings after the close. Volkswagen profit doubled on higher auto prices. Japan Tobacco finalized its purchase of Galllaher Group in the U.K. Essar Global based in India is to purchase its second steel company in less than a week in North America.


Yield on 10-year bond closed at 4.652% and the 30-year bond closed at 4.814%.

Gold gained 80 cents to close at $693.300 a troy ounce, silver decreased 4.5 cents to end at $13.975 a troy ounce and copper advanced $322.500 to close at $8090.000 per metric ton.

Oil advanced 3 cents to close at $63.130 a barrel and heating oil gained 0.880 cents to finish at 180.660 cents a gallon. Natural gas increased 7.9 cents to close at $7.497 per MMBtu. Gasoline went up 2.670 cents to end at 208.250 cents a gallon.

Asian markets closed mostly higher thanks to the exporters advance after upbeat U.S. economic data eased concerns over the economic growth outlook for Asia''s most important export market. Mining sector was lifted by higher metal price. The advancers were led by Japan with an increase of 0.80%, Taiwan with an advance of 0.55% and India with a gain of 0.48%. The decliners were led by Philippines with a decrease of 0.69%, Singapore with a loss of 0.44% and Thailand with a decline of 0.40%. Australia advanced by 0.75%.

European markets finished lower on weakness in mining and automotive sectors. The decliners were led by Norway with a decline of 1.08%, Germany with a decrease of 0.90% and U.K. with a loss of 0.74%. The only advancer was Switzerland with an increase of 0.55%.

Latin America markets finished mostly higher. The advancers were led by Brazil with a gain of 0.89% and Argentina with an advance of 0.57%. The only decliner was Mexico with a loss of 0.18%. Canada gained 0.31%.

[R]2:30PM NY, U.S. Market Movers[/R]

AMR Corp. ((AMR)), airline company, said that it swung to a profit of $81 million, or 30 cents per share, in the first three months of the year, compared to a loss of $92 million, or 49 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 1.6 percent, to $5.43 billion, slightly below the $5.46 billion forecast by analysts. American drew strength from its international operations, which saw stronger traffic, while the domestic business was weaker. Shares climbed 3.2%.

Espeed Inc. ((ESPD)) shares climbed 10.1% after the shareholder of securities-trading software company eSpeed Inc., Chapman Capital LLC, called for the replacement of four eSpeed directors. Chapman Capital is the Los Angeles-based investment adviser to two funds that together own 9.3% of eSpeed''s Class A shares. Chapman also reiterated its previous demands that the board agree to an immediate auction of the company and collapse the dual voting ownership structure by converting all Class B common shares into Class A.

Genlyte Group Inc. ((GLYT)), light manufacturer, said that for the first quarter it earned $35 million or $1.20 per share compared with $48.6 million, or $1.70 per share, for the same quarter in 2006. The 2006 quarter''s results included a $24.7 million tax benefit, that boosted the company''s earnings per share by 86 cents. Revenue rose 20% to $394.4 million versus $329.2 million in the year-ago period. The company said a combination of adding new products and maintaining price increases helped achieve higher sales and profit margins for the first quarter. Shares jumped 7.9%.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. ((JPM)), banking company, said first-quarter net income increased more than 50% to $4.8 billion, or $1.34 per share, compared with $3.1 billion, or 86 cents per share in the year-ago period. Income from continuing operations came in at $4.8 billion, or $1.34 per share, compared with $3 billion, or 85 cents per share last year. Total net revenue climbed 25% to $18.97 billion. The company also increased its dividend by 12% to 38 cents per share and launched a $10 billion stock repurchase program. Shares climbed 3.8%.

Linear Technology Corp. ((LLTC)), chipmaker, shares jumped 12% after the company posted in-line third-quarter earnings and announced a $3 billion share repurchase plan. For the period the company earned $98.6 million, or 32 cents per share, on revenue of $255 million. Analysts expected earnings of 32 cents per share on revenue of $254 million. During the year-earlier period, the company earned $110.6 million, or 35 cents per share, on revenue of $278.9 million.

OMI Corp. ((OMM)), which owns and operates a fleet of crude oil tankers, shares rose 5.1% after the company agreed to be bought out by Teekay and Denmark''s TORM for $1.81 billion in cash.

Badger Meter ((BMI)) shares sank 10.3% after the maker of flow measurement and control technology said fiscal first-quarter profit declined 39%, and widely missed Wall Street expectations. Net income declined to $2.6 million, or 18 cents per share, compared with $4.2 million, or 30 cents per share, during the same period last year. Earnings from continuing operations totaled $2.5 million, or 17 cents per share, versus $5.2 million, or 37 cents per share, a year earlier.

Cognex Corp. ((CGNX)), which makes vision sensors used by manufacturers, said that its first-quarter profit plunged 47% from last year as sales declined. Net income for the quarter was $4.6 million, or 10 cents per share, down from $8.8 million, or 18 cents per share, for the first quarter 2006. Revenue was $50.9 million, down 14% from $59 million in the year ago period. Shares fell 6.5%.

Knight Capital Group Inc. ((NITE)), which executes trades for institutional investors, said that its first-quarter profit slid 35% on lower revenue and a loss from discontinued operations. Net income fell to $31.9 million, or 31 cents per share, from $49.1 million, or 47 cents per share, in the prior-year period. Revenue for the quarter fell 12.8% to $241.7 million. On a continuing operations basis, profit was 32 cents per share. Shares fell 6.1%.

Syntel Inc. ((SYNT)), information technology and outsourcing services provider, said its first-quarter profit climbed 28%, bolstered by higher revenue and better margins. The company lifted full-year expectations, but warned that second-quarter earnings and margins would be hurt by visa processing costs and salary increases in India. The company''s gross profit margin improved to 39.1 percent from 38.3 percent in the prior-year period. Shares fell 7.1%.

[R]1:00AM NY, 5:00 PM Frankfurt European stocks closed in the negative on weak mining and automotive stocks.[/R]
European stock markets closed in the negative on Wednesday, dragged down by weaker mining and automotive stocks which offset gains from chip-equipment maker ASML and Swiss drug maker Roche. Miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto declined 2.6% and 1%, respectively as copper prices pulled back and the dollar weakened. The record-low dollar also hurt exporter-related stocks. Accordingly, shares of BMW slipped 1.3%, while Porsche also lost ground. Among other losers, shares of rate-sensitive property companies Hammerson dropped 2.5% while British Land lost more than 4%. On the side of the gainers, shares of ASML Holding rose 5.49% after the producer of equipment used to manufacture microchips said Q1 net profit nearly doubled to 153 million euros.
Meanwhile, shares of Swiss drug giant Roche Holdings moved up 2%. The German DAX 30 declined 0.90% to close at 7,282.34, the French CAC-40 lost 0.38% at 5,835.95 and the U.K.''s FTSE 100 slipped 0.74% at 6,449.40.


[R]11:30AM U.S. market averages turned mixed on earnings reports.[/R]
U.S. market averages turned mixed in late morning trading, reflecting upbeat earnings at JP Morgan Chase & Co. and Intel Corp. and concerns about the technology sector, raised by lower-than-expected earnings at Yahoo and a downgrade of IBM. J.P.Morgan ((JPM)) and Intel ((UNTC)) led the Dow higher, posting an advance of 4.1% and 1.7%, respectively. Notable weakness was visible among disk drive stocks, with Seagate Technology ((STX)) helping to lead the sector down, posting a decline of 7% on weaker-than-expected Q1 earnings. IBM ((IBM)) was the biggest drag on the Dow, falling 2.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was weighed down by a 12% drop in the shares of Yahoo ((YHOO)).

Strength in the semiconductor sector helped limit losses. Shares of Linear Technology ((LLTC)) climbed 12% after the chip maker reported Q3 earnings in line with analyst estimates and revealed a $3 billion accelerated stock repurchase plan. Some transportation stocks also posted strong gains, with shares of CSX ((CSX)) up 4.1% even though the railroad operator reported Q1 earnings drop that came in below analyst estimates. Oil service stocks showed weakness following several downgrades by Citigroup ((C)), while airline stocks moved higher, helped by AMR ((AMR)), which rose 2.6% after posting quarterly profit versus a loss a year ago. In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 20.23, or 0.16%, at 12,793.27, points away from its trading high of 12,795.93 set Feb. 20. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was up 1.43, or 0.10%, at 1,472.91, and the Nasdaq composite index shed 3.99, or 0.16%, to 2,512.96. Bonds rose for the third straight session, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note falling to 4.66% from 4.69% late Tuesday.


[R]9:45AM U.S. markets opened lower on disappointing tech earnings.[/R]
U.S. stocks declined at opening Wednesday amid a batch of mixed earnings reports that led to some profit-taking. A sharp decline in the dollar, hitting a 26-year low vs. the British pound and nearing an all-time low vs. the euro, also contributed to the negative mood. Weakness in the tech sector weighed after disappointing earnings results sent Yahoo ((YHOO)) down 12% and a broker downgrade pushed IBM ((IBM)) lower by 2%.

Financial stocks were helped by J.P. Morgan ((JPM)), which like a number of other blue-chip stocks which have released Q1 earnings so far, topped estimates. The company''s shares rose 4% after it said Q1 net income rose more than 50% to $1.34 a share, from 86 cents a year ago, well above estimates of $1.02 a share. The company also increased its dividend by 12% and launched a $10 billion stock repurchase program. Intel ((INTC))also helped support the Dow, rising 0.5% after the chip maker''s earnings topped expectations. Caterpillar ((CAT)) also supported the blue-chip average, moving up 1.5% after Wachovia upgraded the company, predicting that its earnings will accelerate in 2008.

Further on the earnings news front, United Technologies ((UTX)) was among the very few gainers, moving 0.7% higher on stronger-than-expected profit. Shares of Motorola ((MOT)) rose 2.1% after the company said that revenue and earnings excluding special items beat expectations. Outside the sector, Abbott Laboratories ((ABT)) dropped 2.2% after the company reported Q1 earnings drop of 19% to 45 cents a share from 56 cents a year earlier, exceeding expectations. In the first hour of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 15.61, or 0.12%, to 12,757.43. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was down 2.64, or 0.18%, at 1,468.84, and the Nasdaq composite index shed 8.45, or 0.34%, to 2,508.50.


[R]9:30AM The UK benchmark index declines Wednesday on interest rate fears.[/R]
The UK market was lower on Wednesday. By mid-day, the FTSE 100 was down 30 points to 6,471.1.

Advancers

Barclays traded higher, rising 0.8%, as ABN Amro announced it would meet with rival suitors Royal Bank of Scotland, Banco Santander and Fortis to hear their proposal for a break-up bid.

Among the mid-caps, EMI Group advanced 6% as the world third largest record company stated it had suspended its dividend payments and was mulling a securitisation of its publishing assets. EMI has warned on profits twice this year.

Another mid-cap, WS Atkins, advanced 7.8% after the engineering consultancy announced that profit for the year to March would be significantly ahead of expectations. DS Smith also advanced 7.1% after an upbeat trading statement from the packaging group.

Decliners

Real estate stocks led the decliners, with Hammerson down 2.3% and Land Securities Group off 1.9%.

Ex-dividend stocks were also lower. British Land fell 2.2%, BAE Systems dropped 2.1%, Legal & General lost 2% and Slough Estates was off 2.1%.


[R]9:15AM Asian markets finished mixed Wednesday with Japan higher, HK lower.[/R]
Asian markets ended mixed on Wednesday. The 225-issue Nikkei Average ended up 0.8% to 17,667.33. Canon was 0.8% higher in Tokyo, while Toyota Motor added 1.1%. Medical-imaging equipment maker Fujifilm Holdings advanced 1.4% after reports that the company will report an 80% increase in group operating profit for the fiscal year ending March 2008.

Australian S&P ASX/200 gained 0.8% to end at 6,236.90. BHP Billiton added 1.3% and Rio Tinto was up 1.4% after copper prices reached their highest-ever level in New York trading on concerns over a potential supply disruption related to a labor dispute at Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Grasberg mine in Indonesia.

Shanghai Composite Index ended nearly unchanged at 3,612.39 and Hong Kong Hang Seng Index closed 0.1% lower at 20,777.09. In China, investors took to the sidelines ahead of the release of the country first-quarter GDP data Thursday afternoon, which is believed to show Chinese economy continues to expand at a rapid pace. Shares of PICC Property & Casualty tumbled 6.1% in Hong Kong, after reporting 2006 net profit had more than doubled.

South Korean Kospi index ended up 0.4% at 1534.58. Hyundai Motor fell 0.7%, easing back from earlier gains. Taiwan Weighted Price Index rose 0.6% to close at 8,003.31 and Singapore Straits Times Index shed 0.4% to 3,400.41.


[R]9:00AM Wall Street to open lower on weak earnings from Yahoo, Motorola.[/R]
U.S. stock market futures pointed to a lower opening Wednesday, dragged down by weakness in the tech sector, generated by disappointing earnings news at Yahoo and a downgrade of IBM. Stronger-than-anticipated financial results from blue-chip chipmaker Intel and financial services giant J.P. Morgan, failed to lift sentiment.

Yahoo ((YHOO)) shares slipped 8.8% in pre-market trading after the company posted disappointing Q1 profit and revenue. Yahoo revealed its Q1 profit had fallen by 11%. Dow component IBM ((IBM)) dropped 2.5% in the pre-open after the company posted an 8% increase in Q1 profit to $1.84 billion, or $1.21 a share, in line with expectations. Goldman Sachs downgraded its stock to neutral from buy following the results, citing a slowdown in U.S. tech spending.

Among companies posting positive quarterly results, Intel ((INTC)) traded up 1.7% in the pre-open following an announcement that its Q1 profit surged 19%, exceeding expectations. Fellow Dow component United Technologies ((UTX)) rose 1.4% amid Q1 earnings rise of 6.6% to $819 million, or 82 cents a share, beating forecasts of 80 cents a share. Blue-chip J.P.Morgan ((JPM)) rose 3% after it said Q1 net income rose more than 50% to $4.8 billion, or $1.34 a share, from $3.1 billion, or 86 cents a year ago, well above estimates of $1.02 a share. The company also increased its dividend by 12% and launched a $10 billion stock repurchase program.

Again in the tech sector, Motorola ((MOT)) said it swung to a Q1 loss of $181 million, or 9 cents a share, from a profit of $686 million, or 26 cents a share a year earlier, hurt by lower-than-expected mobile phone sales and charges. Excluding non-recurring items and discontinued operations, the company said it would have had a profit of 2 cents a share, in line with forecasts. The stock added 0.8% in the pre-open. Futures for the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 fell 10.25 points 1,842.00, and the S&P 500 futures shed 4.00 points to 1,475.00. Dow industrials futures lost 22 points at 12,804.



[R]8:15AM Intel gained 2.5% in the pre-open on better-than-expected earnings. Yahoo slipped 9%.[/R]
Intel ((INTC)) traded up 2.5% in the pre-open following an announcement that its Q1 profit surged 19% to $1.61 billion, or 27 cents per share, higher than $1.36 billion, or 23 cents per share in the same period last year. Intel said revenue in the quarter was $8.85 billion, down slightly from last year''s $8.94 billion. The quarterly profit exceeded analyst expectations for net income of 22 cents a share on $9 billion in revenue. Investors welcomed the news of surging profit as well as positive forecasts after a year of plunging profits and massive job cuts.

Yahoo ((YHOO)) shares slipped 8.8% in pre-market trading after the company posted disappointing Q1 profit and revenue. Yahoo revealed its Q1 profit had fallen by 11% to $142.4 million, or 10 cents per share, down from net income of $159.9 million, or 11 cents per share last year although revenue for the period rose 7% to $1.67 billion The results were a penny below the average earnings estimate. Yahoo''s stock price had surged by 26% so far this year, reflecting hopes that the company will regain its financial momentum after stumbling through much of 2006.


[R]8:00AM NY-7:00PM Mumbai Sensex closes with a slight gain, NTPC rallies.[/R]
The Sensex on BSE finished 65.15 points, or 0.48%, higher at 13,672.19. The market-breadth finished positive, but it weakened at the end of trading. For 1,341 stocks which advanced, 1,232 stocks declined, and only 88 were unchanged. Of the 30 stocks in the Sensex, 20 advanced, while the rest declined. The turnover on BSE was Rs 3,757 crore, lower than Rs 4,565.32 crore on Tuesday. On NSE, the turnover was Rs 8,600.37 crore, also lower than Rs 9,611.56 crore on Tuesday.

Economic news

The rupee again advanced against the US currency, after pausing briefly, and was quoted at 41.88/41.89 a dollar in late morning deals supported by robust capital inflows and weaker Us currency against other world currencies.

The Union government is open to changes in the 5,000 hectare land ceiling for special economic zones which was decided at the meeting of Empowered Group of Ministers.

Although he government still has reservations over allowing pension funds in stock markets, retirement savings worth a billion dollars of more than one million Americans have already been injected in Indian equities and it is likely to increase further this year.

Trading highlights

ICRA was the most-active stock with a turnover of Rs 391.80 crore followed by Tata Steel and debutant Dish TV.

IPO

Dish TV was trading at Rs 102.55 on BSE today. The stock debuted at Rs 120, which is its high so far. Dish TV reached as low as Rs 100. A huge 1.88 crore shares were traded on BSE. Stock exchanges have set Rs 115 as a base price for Dish TV to calculate 20% daily circuit filter on the first day of trading in the stock.

Advancers

NTPC led the gainers, soaring over 3% to Rs 162. The stock reached a high of Rs 163.55, which is an all-time high.. State banks extended gains, buoyed by data showing cooling of inflation for the week ended March 31 2007. SBI surged 2.6% to Rs 1,035, Andhra Bank rose 5% to Rs 82.75, Corporation Bank gained 3% to Rs 312, Bank of India advanced 2.8% to Rs 188.25.

Wipro advanced over 2% to Rs 586. Telecom stocks gained on strong growth in new subscription additions in March 2007. Bharti Airtel rose 1.5% to Rs 813 and Reliance Communications gained 0.5% to Rs 435. ONGC, HDFC Bank and Cipla gained around 1.5% each to Rs 905, Rs 988 and Rs 233, respectively. Recently, ONGC had unveiled its expansion plans.

Index heavy Reliance Industries rose 0.6% to Rs 1,485, reaching a high of Rs 1,495, which is an all-time high. The stock has rallied this month after Chairman Mukesh Ambani had stated on Monday that the petrochemicals cycle was yet to reach its peak.

Cement large-cap ACC surged around 1.3% to Rs 817, bucking the overall downtrend in cement stocks.

Decliners

Tata Steel led decliners, plunging to a low of Rs 496, or 6% in the opening trades on concerns of equity dilution post the rights issue. The stock, managed to come back with a loss of only 3% at Rs 511. Tata Steel announced on Tuesday it will raise Rs 3655 crore, or $872 million, from a rights issue, to fund a $12-billion acquisition of Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus Group. Tata Steel will offer a rights share at Rs 300 each in 1:5 ratio. The company also plans to raise Rs 4350 crore from the rights issue of preference shares.

Cement large-caps dipped on profit-taking. Grasim shed over 1.% to Rs 2343 and Gujarat Ambuja Cements lost 0.7% to Rs 112.90. Cement stocks had rebounded from lower levels over the past few days on expectations of strong earnings season.

Auto stocks declined. Bajaj Auto lost 2% to Rs 2,497, having surged 4.2% in the past two trading sessions on reports that India will enjoy a healthy monsoon. Tata Motors shed 1.1% to Rs 722.


[R]6:30AM European markets were lower on Wednesday on weak auto and construction stocks.[/R]
European markets were lower on Wednesday. The German DAX Xetra 30 index lost 0.6% at 7,305.77, the French CAC-40 index declined 0.4% at 5,836.89 and the U.K. FTSE 100 index slipped 0.3% at 6,476.00. National benchmarks declined in all of the 17 western European markets that were open except Denmark, Switzerland and Portugal.

Advancers

ASML Holding, the largest micro-chip equipment maker in Europe, gained 2.9% as its first-quarter net profit nearly doubled to 153 million euros, or $208 million, from 80 million euros a year earlier.

Swiss drug maker Roche Holdings announced that its first-quarter sales rose 16% in Swiss francs to 11.4 billion francs and also upgraded its 2007 earnings-per-share outlook. Pharmaceutical division sales grew 18% in Swiss francs to 9.14 billion francs, with key oncology, virology, transplantation, osteoporosis and rheumatoid arthritis medicines contributing to strong growth. Roche upgraded its core earnings per share outlook to reflect expected growth above group sales growth. Shares advanced 2.2%.

Music company EMI Group gained 2.7% as it expects to report underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization for the year ended March 31 of around 174 million pounds, which it said is ahead of the market forecast.

Decliners

BMW and DaimlerChrysler lost more than 1% in morning trading as crude price rose 28 cents to $64.74 a barrel. Nokia and Atos Origin SA led technology-related shares lower. Nokia, which announced a partnership with Yahoo in January, dropped 1.1%. Atos, the official supplier of computer services for the Beijing Olympics, lost 1.3% after Citigroup Inc. lowered its recommendation to sell from hold.

Eiffage SA, the third-biggest construction company in France, sank 3.3%. Sacyr Vallehermoso, the largest shareholder company of the company, and Spanish investors walked out of the Eiffage shareholders meeting today. Eiffage asked to block the voting rights of the Spanish investors.

Oil and precious metals

Crude oil fell amid expectations supplies of crude will meet demand from refineries working to produce more fuel before the summer driving season. Crude oil for May delivery fell 65 cents, or 1 %, to $62.45 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract, which expires at the end of this week, traded at $62.65 this morning in London. The more actively traded June contract fell 60 cents to $63.86.

Brent crude oil for June settlement decreased 93 cents, or 1.4%, to $65 a barrel in electronic trading on the ICE Futures exchange and traded at $65.21 this morning in London.

Gold climbed to its highest since May in London after investors bought the commodity as a hedge against declines in the U.S. dollar, which dipped close to a two- year low against the euro. Silver and platinum also gained. Gold for immediate delivery in London rose as much as $4.60, or 0.7 %, to $691.15 an ounce, the highest since May 12. It traded at $689.75. Silver for immediate delivery gained rose 14 cents, or 1%, to $11.035. Platinum increased $11.50, or 0.9%, to $1,282.50 an ounce and palladium dropped $4, or 1.1%, to $372.50.

Currencies

The dollar closed in on an all-time low against the euro and fell further against the British pound European trading Wednesday morning. The euro traded at $1.3607, up from $1.3593 late Tuesday in New York. The British pound traded at $2.0110, up from $2.0066. The pound has reached its highest level since 1981. The dollar bought 118.68 Japanese yen, down from 118.95.