Feb 19 (Reuters) - European shares slipped on Thursday, with miners and utilities leading the sectoral decliners, as investors sifted through a mixed bag of earnings from the likes of Airbus, Rio Tinto and Nestle.
The pan-European index closed 0.5% lower at 625.33 points, retreating sharply from a record close on Wednesday.
Most of the major regional bourses also traded in negative territory.
Airbus shares fell 6.8% after the world's largest planemaker softened its main jet production target, blaming engine maker Pratt & Whitney for failing to strike a crucial supply agreement.
The world's largest iron ore producer Rio Tinto declined 3.7% after the firm reported flat annual earnings that missed expectations on weaker iron ore prices.
Nescafe coffee maker Nestle rose 3.9% after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales growth and said it planned to sell its ice cream business.
"The idea of spinning off its ice cream division has really struck a chord because these are the divisions that are going to have to be really fleet of foot over the coming years," said Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell.
"As consumer habits change and more people use weight loss drugs, reducing ice cream consumption, companies must carefully rethink the products they're developing."
Earnings expectations have improved over the course of this reporting season. Data compiled by LSEG show analysts now see quarterly earnings dropping 0.6% year-on-year, compared with a 4% drop earlier this month.
Leading the sectoral losses, miners dropped 2.1%, pulling back after Wednesday's sharp rebound.
Meanwhile, utilities fell 1.8%, marking their sharpest one-day fall since July. Investor sentiment took a hit after Italy approved a hike in corporate taxes on energy firms to help cut power bills.
A disappointing update from Centrica also weighed on the sector. The British Gas owner warned that 2026 profit at its energy trading arm would miss its forecasts and paused its share buyback programme, sending its shares down 5.2%.
Investors globally were on edge after the U.S. and Iran heightened military activity in the oil-rich Middle East, even as talks on Tehran's nuclear programme in Geneva showed signs of progress.
European energy stocks were 0.9% higher, tracking a 2% gain in crude prices.
Among others, French telecoms group Orange climbed 7.5% to an over 16-year-high after targeting organic cash flow of around 5.2 billion euros ($6.1 billion) by 2028.
Arcadis fell 9.6% after the Netherlands-based sustainable design firm's 2025 revenue missed analyst expectations.
(Reporting by Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair and Chris Reese)
By Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur
