Earnings misses put dampener on European shares
Reuters
Published Nov 06, 2017 04:31AM ET
Earnings misses put dampener on European shares
By Helen Reid
LONDON (Reuters) - European shares edged lower on Monday after a strong run, with declines in Asia weighing as some earnings disappointments also took the shine off early deals.
The pan-European STOXX 600 (STOXX) was down 0.1 percent, with Dutch firms SBM Offshore and Vopak falling sharply after badly received results. Euro zone stocks (STOXXE) and blue chips (STOXX50E) were down 0.3 percent and 0.4 percent respectively.
JP Morgan strategists said it was prudent to take profits in European cyclicals, downgrading them to neutral from overweight.
"Risk repriced very sharply in the last two months, with... Cyclicals vs Defensives up as much as 900 basis points," wrote European equity strategist Mislav Matejka, adding they remained bullish on the overall market thanks to strong earnings and economic activity.
Energy company SBM Offshore (AS:SBMO) sank 12 percent after taking a $238 million provision to settle a U.S. investigation over a Latin American bribery case.
The company said a preliminary settlement reached with Brazilian authorities had fallen through, and as a result it would no longer be able to participate in tenders for Petrobras (SA:PETR4), one of its largest customers.
Chemical and oil storage firm Vopak (AS:VOPA) fell 7 percent after profits missed expectations. It lowered its earnings guidance for the full year, citing weaker occupancy rates and higher costs.
Shares in French hotel group Accor (PA:ACCP) fell 1.7 percent at the open, the biggest CAC 40 faller, after its third biggest shareholder Prince Alwaleed bin Talal was arrested in Saudi Arabia amid a purge by the future king.
The news is stirring concerns about the possibility of Saudi money pulling out of world markets.
Bank stocks were weaker across the region, with Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) and BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) among the worst performers. Euro zone lenders (SX7E) were down 0.9 percent as investors exercised greater caution.
A string of target price cuts from JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), Deutsche Bank (DE:DBKGn), Kepler Cheuvreux and Natixis hit Societe Generale, down 3.3 percent as analysts digested last Friday's weaker results.
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Overall, with 60 percent of third-quarter results through for MSCI Europe, 67 percent of companies have beaten or met expectations.
Financials and technology stocks have been the clear leaders while energy and utilities stocks have underperformed, Thomson Reuters data showed.
Shares in Deutsche Telekom (DE:DTEGn) dropped 3 percent to the bottom of the DAX after an attempt by its T-Mobile U.S. unit to merge with Sprint Corp (N:S) collapsed at the weekend.
Among gainers, Tullow Oil (L:TLW) rose 2.3 percent, leading oil stocks higher after crude prices soared to the highest since July 2015 amid the Saudi purge.
Spain's IBEX index (IBEX) fell 0.9 percent, lagging European peers after sacked Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont turned himself in to Belgian authorities while weekend polls showed parties favoring Catalan independence would likely win December's regional election.
Written By: Reuters
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