European Movers: Crest Nicholson (CRST LN) +9.6%, Croda (CRDA LN) +4.7%, Diageo (DGE LN) +2.2%, EssilorLuxottica (EL FP) +1.3%, Henkel (HEN3 GY) +1.3%, Shell (SHEL LN) -1.5%
Crest Nicholson (CRST LN) - Q1 Trading Update: Group has seen a sustained improvement in the sales rate since the middle of January. Affirms outlook. The Group is yet to see any material trading impact from the wider macroeconomic shock of recent weeks. (Crest Nicholson)
Croda (CRDA LN) upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley
Diageo (DGE LN) - Diageo subsidiary United Spirits Limited announces full divesture of its stake in Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd, for a total consideration of INR 166.6bln. (Diageo)
EssilorLuxottica (EL FP) - Metaʼs rollout of new display-equipped Ray-Ban smart glasses in the EU has been delayed by battery and AI regulations as well as supply constraints, Bloomberg said. Meta wants to launch the product in the bloc, but has been unable to secure enough supply. (Bloomberg)
Henkel (HEN3 GY) – CEO says it will pass on costs to customers, if manufacturing costs rise “drastically”. (Newswires)
Shell (SHEL LN) downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley
Crest Nicholson has reported strong Q1 sales trends, indicating resilience despite recent macroeconomic challenges, which affirm its positive outlook. Meanwhile, Croda's upgrade to Overweight by Morgan Stanley suggests increased confidence in its growth potential. Conversely, Shell's downgrade narrows sentiment on the stock, highlighting potential challenges ahead in the integrated oil sector.