$Hareholder Investigation: The M&A Class Action Firm Investigates The Merger And Upcoming Vote Of Cac, Ob, Smar And Pfc

Investing.com – France stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Technology, Healthcare and Consumer Services sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Paris, the CAC 40 fell 0.14% to hit a new 3-months low, while the SBF 120 index lost 0.16%.

The best performers of the session on the CAC 40 were Publicis Groupe SA (EPA:PUBP), which rose 1.69% or 1.70 points to trade at 102.50 at the close. Meanwhile, Hermes International SCA (EPA:HRMS) added 1.21% or 24.00 points to end at 2,003.00 and Schneider Electric SE (EPA:SCHN) was up 1.07% or 2.55 points to 241.20 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA), which fell 4.23% or 1.08 points to trade at 24.45 at the close. Capgemini SE (EPA:CAPP) declined 3.89% or 6.40 points to end at 157.95 and Thales (EPA:TCFP) was down 2.70% or 4.35 points to 156.50.

The top performers on the SBF 120 were Valneva (EPA:VLS) which rose 6.96% to 2.40, Nexans SA (EPA:NEXS) which was up 4.21% to settle at 118.80 and Fnac Darty SA (EPA:FNAC) which gained 3.68% to close at 26.75.

The worst performers were Atos SE (EPA:ATOS) which was down 28.80% to 0.30 in late trade, STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA) which lost 4.23% to settle at 24.45 and Solutions 30 SE (EPA:S30) which was down 3.93% to 0.95 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Paris Stock Exchange by 296 to 200 and 83 ended unchanged.

Shares in Capgemini SE (EPA:CAPP) fell to 52-week lows; down 3.89% or 6.40 to 157.95. Shares in Solutions 30 SE (EPA:S30) fell to 5-year lows; losing 3.93% or 0.04 to 0.95.

The CAC 40 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of CAC 40 options, was unchanged 0.00% to 18.96 a new 52-week high.

Gold Futures for December delivery was down 0.68% or 17.70 to $2,588.60 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in December rose 0.25% or 0.17 to hit $68.29 a barrel, while the January Brent oil contract rose 0.29% or 0.21 to trade at $72.10 a barrel.

EUR/USD was down 0.58% to 1.06, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.20% to 0.83.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.42% at 106.40.

Investing.com - European stock markets slipped slightly Wednesday, with investors focusing on upcoming US inflation data as well as digesting more quarterly corporate earnings.

At 07:15 ET (12:15 GMT), the DAX index in Germany traded 0.3% lower, the CAC 40 in France fell 0.2%, while the FTSE 100 in the U.K. slipped 0.1%.

US inflation in spotlight

The economic data slate is largely empty in Europe Wednesday, and thus investors are likely to focus on October’s inflation data out of the US, a likely key factor when it comes to the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut or maintain interest rates in the world’s largest economy.

This CPI reading is expected to show that annual consumer inflation rose to 2.6% in October, up from 2.4% the prior month, while the widely-watched annual ‘core’ number, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is seen remaining at 3.3%.

Minneapolis Fed chief Neel Kashkari warned on Tuesday that any increases in inflation could see the Fed keep rates on hold.

His comments saw traders trim bets on a 25 basis point cut in December, with traders pricing in a 64.2% chance for a cut, down from yesterday’s 66.7% probability of a cut, according to CME Fedwatch.

U.S. October producer prices on Thursday and US retail sales on Friday fill out the week, while in Europe, UK GDP data is scheduled.

Allianz reports solid Q3

In the European corporate sector, Allianz (ETR:ALVG) stock rose 1.3% after the German financial services company reported solid third-quarter results for 2024, surpassing market expectations in key areas of its operations.

ABN Amro (AS:ABNd) stock slipped 1.7% after the Dutch lender postponed a decision on potential share buybacks until the second quarter of 2025, even after beating third-quarter profit expectations, driven by sustained improvement of net interest income, and strong performance of fees.

Siemens (ETR:SIEGn) Energy (ETR:ENR1n) stock rose 14% after the German energy company decided against proposing a dividend for the 2024 fiscal year, citing limitations to its payout policy as a result of obtaining project guarantees last year that are backed by the German government.

Smiths Group (LON:SMIN) stock rose 11% after the UK engineering group raised its full-year outlook following its strong first quarter performance.

Just Eat Takeaway (AS:TKWY) stock soared 16% after Europe's biggest meal delivery firm struck a deal to sell its U.S. unit Grubhub to Wonder for $650 million.

The Amsterdam-listed firm had been looking to offload Chicago-based Grubhub since as early as 2022, after acquiring it in 2020 in a $7.3 billion all-stock deal.

Crude pares losses

Oil prices edged higher Wednesday, paring recent losses, but remained near their lowest in two weeks after OPEC downgraded its global oil demand growth forecasts.

By 07:15 ET, the Brent contract climbed 0.2% to $72.01 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures (WTI) traded 0.2% higher at $68.28 per barrel.

Both contracts had fallen by more than 5% at the start of the week, weighed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cutting, in its monthly report on Tuesday, its forecast for world oil demand growth in both 2024 and 2025, mostly due to weakness in China, the world's biggest oil importer.

The International Energy Agency is set to publish its updated forecast on Thursday.

Investing.com - European stock markets traded in tight ranges Wednesday, with investors focusing on upcoming US inflation data as well as digesting more quarterly corporate earnings.

At 03:05 ET (08:05 GMT), the DAX index in Germany traded largely flat, the CAC 40 in France fell 0.2%, while the FTSE 100 in the U.K. gained 0.1%.

US inflation in spotlight

The economic data slate is largely empty in Europe Wednesday, and thus investors are likely to focus on October’s inflation data out of the US, a likely key factor when it comes to the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut or maintain interest rates in the world’s largest economy.

This CPI reading is expected to show that annual consumer inflation rose to 2.6% in October, up from 2.4% the prior month, while the widely-watched annual ‘core’ number, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is seen remaining at 3.3%.

Minneapolis Fed chief Neel Kashkari warned on Tuesday that any increases in inflation could see the Fed keep rates on hold.

His comments saw traders trim bets on a 25 basis point cut in December, with traders pricing in a 64.2% chance for a cut, down from yesterday’s 66.7% probability of a cut, according to CME Fedwatch.

U.S. October producer prices on Thursday and US retail sales on Friday fill out the week, while in Europe, UK GDP data is scheduled.

Just Eat soars after Grubhub divestment

In the European corporate sector, Just Eat Takeaway (AS:TKWY) stock soared 18% after Europe's biggest meal delivery firm struck a deal to sell its U.S. unit Grubhub to Wonder for $650 million.

The Amsterdam-listed firm had been looking to offload Chicago-based Grubhub since as early as 2022, after acquiring it in 2020 in a $7.3 billion all-stock deal.

Elsewhere, ABN Amro (AS:ABNd) stock slipped 0.3% despite the Dutch lender beating third-quarter profit expectations, driven by sustained improvement of net interest income, and strong performance of fees.

Siemens (ETR:SIEGn) Energy (ETR:ENR1n) stock rose 15% after the German energy company decided against proposing a dividend for the 2024 fiscal year, citing limitations to its payout policy as a result of obtaining project guarantees last year that are backed by the German government.

Crude prices pare losses

Oil prices edged higher Wednesday, paring recent losses, but remained near their lowest in two weeks after OPEC downgraded its global oil demand growth forecasts.

By 03:05 ET, the Brent contract climbed 0.3% to $72.08 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures (WTI) traded 0.3% higher at $68.30 per barrel.

Both contracts had fallen by more than 5% at the start of the week, weighed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries cutting, in its monthly report on Tuesday, its forecast for world oil demand growth in both 2024 and 2025, mostly due to weakness in China, the world's biggest oil importer.

The International Energy Agency is set to publish its updated forecast on Thursday.