Mib breaks 28,000-point support; Pirelli down

(Alliance News) - On Thursday, the Mib reverses the bullish trend seen in the first hour of trading, setting the point bar below the 28,000 support, as corporate interim reports show up again and again in the packed corporate calendar.

Investors continue to assess the state of inflation, interest rates and the health of the global economy. Traders are concerned about soaring oil prices and global bond yields that support a scenario of higher interest rates for a longer period.

The indicator of economic sentiment in the Eurozone dropped to the 93.3 area in September, down from a revised 93.6 in the previous month. However, it exceeded market expectations of 92.5. This still marked the lowest since November 2020, however, reflecting the continued impact of inflationary pressures within the bloc and the European Central Bank's aggressive tightening of monetary policy, which continued to dampen overall morale.

The FTSE Mib, therefore, has a bearish reading of 0.1 percent at 27,983.40.

In Europe, London's FTSE 100 is giving up 0.7 percent, Paris' CAC 40 is retreating 0.1 percent, and Frankfurt's DAX 40 is contracting 0.2 percent.

Among the smaller lists, the Mid-Cap is up 0.1 percent to 39,043.86, the Small-Cap is in the red 0.3 percent to 25,454.01, and Italy Growth is giving up 0.5 percent to 8,278.48.

On the main list in Piazza Affari, Pirelli is giving up 3.0 percent with new price at EUR4.50 per share, in its sixth session on the downside.

Telecom Italia, on the other hand, is giving up 2.8 percent, with new price at EUR0.2933. The company announced Wednesday that its board has granted KKR LP an extension to submit a binding bid for the network until October 15. KKR will submit a bid together with the Ministry of Economy, as previously announced.

Inwit, on the other hand, retreats 1.4 percent, in its fourth session on the bearish side. On the stock it is mentioned that Barclays on Tuesday raised the target to EUR13.70 from EUR13.50 with 'overweight' title.

Also on the bearish side, Amplifon is giving up 1.0%, after 0.1% in the previous session.

Campari, on the other hand, rises 0.6% to EUR10.94 per share, in its fifth session on the bearish side.

Boost also on Saipem, which moves ahead 0.3% to EUR1.46 on the back of the bullish trend -- up more than 4% when considered on a weekly basis -- in the price of a barrel and following up eve's green with 1.6%.

On the Mid-Cap, Danieli & C. - up 3.6 percent - reported Tuesday that it closed the 2022-2023 fiscal year with revenues up year-on-year to EUR4.10 billion from EUR3.62 billion in the previous year. The stock fluctuated upward by 1.8 percent. The board proposed the distribution of a dividend of EUR0.31 for ordinary shares -- worth a total of EUR11.6 million -- and EUR0.3307 for savings shares, worth EUR12.1 million. Last year, the company distirbuted a dividend of EUR0.2793 for savings shares and one of EUR0.30 for ordinary shares.

In contrast, Eurogroup Laminations advances 4.8 percent, rebounding after eight bearish sessions.

Banca Popolare di Sondrio, on the other hand, advances 0.2% to EUR4.91 per share after three sessions among the bearish. Unipol announced Thursday that it has successfully completed the purchase of 46.3 million ordinary shares of Banca Popolare di Sondrio, equivalent to about 10.2 percent of its share capital, through a reverse accelerated bookbuilding procedure aimed exclusively at qualified investors and foreign institutional investors.

The consideration for the purchase of the shares under the RABB is EUR5.10 per share, for a total outlay of approximately EUR235.6 million. Settlement of the RABB will take place on October 2.

Selling prevails on Antares, which marks minus 3.1 percent at EUR3.45 per share, heading for the 13th session to close on the bearish side.

Doing worse is Digital Value, which ranks at the tail end of the convoy giving up 4.9%,heading for the sixth session in a row to close on the bearish trend.

On the Small-Cap, Olidata is giving up 5.3 percent with price at EUR0.72 per share, heading for the sixth sweat to close in a bearish direction.

Gabetti, on the other hand, is giving up 5.1 percent, bringing the weekly balance to a loss of more than 8.3 percent.

Sales also on Bialetti, which is down 2.3% to EUR0.2920. On the stock it is mentioned that Bialetti Holding Srl bought 315,000 ordinary shares in the company. The shares were taken over at an average price per share of EUR0.2830 or so, for a total value of EUR89,000 or so.

Trevi Finanziaria Industriale -- up 5.8 percent -- on Thursday reported that it had approved the group's interim report, which closed with net income for the first half of the year of EUR23.6 million, compared with a net loss of EUR19.8 million in the first half of 2022. Revenues were EUR280.3 million compared to EUR236.1 million in the corresponding period of 2022.

Softlab's board of directors -- up 8.1 percent -- on Thursday approved the half-year financial report as of June 30, which closed with a profit of nearly EUR1.5 million compared to EUR1.3 million a year earlier in the same period. Revenues came in at EUR11.8 million, a figure that was almost stable over the previous year in the same period.

Among SMEs, Doxee advances 7.0 percent with price at EUR5.35, after a very long bearish streak.

Good purchases also on Pharmacosmo, which marks a plus 4.2% at EUR0.85 per share, after three sessions ended among the bearish.

Energy's board of directors - down 7.1% - approved the half-year financial report as of June 30, which closed with a net profit of EUR5.5 million, or 14% of revenues, down from the same period in 2022 when it was EUR10.7 million, or 20.0% of revenues. Sales revenue was EUR39.3 million, down 26 percent, compared to EUR53.3 million in the first half of 2022.

Alfonsino's board -- down 3.7 percent -- on Thursday approved the half-year financial report for the six months ended June 30, which closed with a net loss of EUR800,000 compared to the noted loss of EUR2.0 million in the same period last year. Revenues from sales and services stood at about EUR2.33 million, up 3 percent from June 30, 2023.

In New York overnight Europe, the Dow Jones closed down 0.2 percent, the Nasdaq rose 0.2 percent, and the S&P 500 closed just above par.

Among currencies, the euro changed hands at USD1.0541 versus USD1.0514 in Wednesday's European stock close while the pound was worth USD1.2194 from USD1.2140 on Wednesday night.

Among commodities, Brent crude is worth USD95.97 per barrel versus USD94.76 per barrel at Wednesday's close. Gold, on the other hand, trades at USD1,875.00 an ounce from USD1,885.51 an ounce on Wednesday evening.

On Thursday's afternoon macroeconomic calendar, eyes on U.S. Gross Domestic Product at 1430 CEST, which will arrive at the same time as jobless claims, core PCE and consumer spending. Housing data will arrive at 1600 CEST while closing the day will be the Federal Reserve's balance sheet, scheduled to be released at 2230 CEST.

By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News senior reporter

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