(Alliance News) - On Friday, Europe's major indices ended mixed, with Milan's Piazza Affari closing above the 40,300 mark, while Frankfurt emerged as the worst performer among Europe's leading exchanges.
The FTSE Mib finished up 0.5% at 40,311.99, the Mid-Cap rose 0.2% to 55,527.90, the Small-Cap gained 0.6% to 32,255.72, while the Italy Growth index closed slightly down at 8,271.07.
London's FTSE 100 ended up 0.2%, Paris's CAC 40 posted a fractional gain, while Frankfurt's DAX 40 slipped 0.3%.
On the macroeconomic front, in the US, new residential construction increased by 4.6% in June compared to the previous month, reaching a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 1.321 million units, according to Friday's report from the US Census Bureau.
In the same month, building permits rose by 0.2%, reaching an annualized rate of 1.397 million, above market expectations of 1.39 million.
Back in Milan, Iveco Group stood out among the top performers on the main Piazza Affari index, closing up 8.3% after a weak start to the session.
Driving the stock was news reported by Reuters on Friday, citing three confidential sources, that Exor – the holding company of the Agnelli-Elkann family – is in talks to sell Iveco Group. Tata Motors was mentioned among the potential buyers.
Leonardo also performed well, advancing 3.2% and extending its positive momentum from the previous day.
Intesa Sanpaolo rose 0.1%, with trading volumes exceeding EUR113 million. UBS raised its target price to EUR5.60 from EUR5.35, reaffirming its 'buy' rating.
Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and Mediobanca both returned to gains, rising 0.9% and 1.2% respectively from the previous session.
Meanwhile, tensions at the top continue: Francesco Gaetano Caltagirone called Alberto Nagel's accusations "instrumental and unfounded," after Nagel alleged irregularities in the OPS launched by MPS.
The focus remains on the placement of the third tranche of MPS shares scheduled for November 2024, now under investigation by Milan prosecutors following a complaint from Mediobanca. The government, as the main shareholder in the Siena-based bank, is maintaining a low profile for now.
UniCredit is working to secure an extension for its offer to Banco BPM. Lawyers for the bank, led by Andrea Orcel, are collaborating with Consob to determine if conditions exist for a second suspension. Key issues include the Golden Power regime, certain administrative court (TAR) decisions, and preliminary opinions from the European Commission.
UniCredit's offer is set to expire Wednesday, so any decision from Consob must come before then. A new suspension, lasting up to 30 days, would push the closing to September, extending the passivity rule period for Banco BPM.
UniCredit closed up 0.2% at EUR58.07 per share, while Banco BPM also advanced 0.2%.
On the downside, Buzzi dropped 0.4%, FinecoBank fell 0.7%, and Tenaris ended 1.3% lower.
Stellantis was at the bottom of the main index, down 3.2%. The group announced a new investment in Morocco, aimed at its Kenitra plant, which will double production capacity by 2030. The EUR1.20 billion plan for electric vehicle production drew criticism from Italian politicians.
Tinexta led the Mid-Cap segment with a 13% gain, buoyed by market rumors of a possible takeover by Nextalia, alongside Advent, with a view to delisting the company.
Fincantieri closed up 1.0% after its Norwegian subsidiary Vard announced the signing of a contract with an international client for the design and construction of two Commissioning Service Operation Vessels, with an option for a third. The total value of the two ships was described as "large," between EUR100 million and EUR200 million.
Credito Emiliano fell 0.6% to EUR12.62. On Thursday, the bank announced that Fitch Ratings had confirmed its Long-Term Issuer Default Rating at 'BBB' with a positive outlook, and its Viability Rating at 'bbb'.
Acea rose 0.3% to EUR19.78. The group published a EUR1.5 billion tender for modernization work on the Peschiera-Capore aqueduct, a key infrastructure for Rome's water system and its metropolitan area.
Sesa reversed earlier losses to close up 0.4% from the previous session, with trading volumes above EUR8 million at midday.
At the bottom of the Mid-Cap list, GVS fell 1.4%.
On the Small-Cap index, Seri Industrial finished at the top with a 7.3% gain, recovering from Thursday's losses.
Fidia also performed well, rising 4.6%. The company announced it had appointed Equita Mid Cap Advisory to advise on the search for financial and industrial partners.
doValue gained 3.4% after announcing the signing of a binding agreement with Claimservco Holding – affiliated with funds managed by Waterland Private Equity – and other minority shareholders, for the acquisition of 100% of coeo Group's capital.
illimity Bank announced that, following the acquisition of about 93% of its capital by Banca Ifis, Moody's had upgraded all its ratings, aligning them with those of Banca Ifis and resolving the previous 'review for upgrade'.
illimity advanced 0.1%, while Banca Ifis gained 0.2% on the Mid-Cap segment.
At the bottom of the segment, Met.Extra Group fell 5.8%, while Bestbe Holding lost 7.5%.
Among small and medium-sized enterprises, Tecno led the alternative list with a 17% gain to EUR4.1695 per share, setting a new 52-week high of EUR4.22 during the session.
Arterra Bioscience closed down 5.2% after releasing its first-half figures, despite revenue rising to EUR2.6 million from EUR2.3 million in the same period of 2024.
Eles announced Friday it had received a major first order from a longstanding client, a world leader in the semiconductor sector, for the rental supply of advanced systems dedicated to reliability testing on a broad portfolio of devices.
Eles ended unchanged at EUR2.19 per share.
Among stocks at the bottom with the highest trading volumes by value, Redelfi dropped 4.6% after modest gains in the previous session.
In New York, the Dow was down 0.3%, the Nasdaq up 0.1%, as was the S&P 500.
In currencies, the euro was trading at USD1.1654 from USD1.1588 at Thursday's close, while the pound was at USD1.3447 from USD1.3410 Thursday evening.
As for commodities, Brent crude traded at USD69.44 from USD68.57 per barrel at the previous close, while gold was valued at USD3,360.22 from USD3,333.63 per ounce on Thursday evening.
In Asia, Japan's stock market will be closed on Monday for Marine Day.
Monday's macroeconomic calendar includes the publication of the UK Rightmove House Price Index at 0101 CEST.
At 0300 CEST, China will announce its prime lending rate via the People's Bank of China.
In the afternoon, at 1500 CEST, France will hold three short-term government bond auctions, with maturities of three, six, and 12 months respectively.
Finally, at 1730 CEST, the US will hold three- and six-month Treasury bill auctions.
No significant announcements are expected from companies listed on Piazza Affari.
By Antonio Di Giorgio, Alliance News reporter
Comments and questions: redazione@alliancenews.com
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