EUROPEAN OPEN: AZN LN sees profit growth ahead; BP/ LN deepens cost cuts, suspends buyback; BARC LN tops profit expectations; STAN LN new CFO; KER FP reports accelerating sales

• EUROPEAN OPEN: European equities are opening mixed. Overnight, APAC stocks were mostly higher, taking impetus from the gains on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 approached record levels, and the Nasdaq outperformed as the tech rebound persisted. The yuan rose to its strongest level since May 2023 after reports that Chinese regulators asked banks to limit US Treasury holdings due to concentration and volatility risks. The move was cited as reinforcing de-dollarisation trends and could accelerate capital repatriation into Chinese assets, supporting the currency in both onshore and offshore markets. Gold fell as traders took profits after a two-day rebound and amid a possible technical correction following one of the highest futures closes on record, with silver also declining. Copper and aluminium prices held on to gains as a rally driven by Chinese buying stalled ahead of a major holiday period. Oil held a two-day advance as tensions in the Middle East, focused on OPEC member Iran, supported a risk premium; Brent traded just below USD 69/bbl, WTI was near USD 64/bbl. In data, BRC reported UK retail sales rose 2.3% Y/Y (exp. 1.2%, prev. 1%).
• STOCK SPECIFICS: In healthcare, AstraZeneca (AZN LN) expects further profit growth this year, supported by cancer drug sales, as it offsets a patent expiry on a diabetes treatment; it said adj. EPS should rise by a low double-digit percentage (in line with expectations), and FY26 revenue seen up by mid-to-high single digits; Q4 profit and revenue broadly met estimates, with core EPS at 2.12 (exp. 2.14), and Q4 revenue at USD 15.5bln (exp. 15.46bln). Philips (PHIA NA) targets an operating margin in the mid-teens by 2028 and expects comparable sales growth in the mid-single-digits between 2026 and 2028, setting new adj. EBITA goals ahead of an investor day. The company also forecasts comparable sales growth of 3% to 4.5% this year and plans to propose extending CEO Jakobs’ tenure. The FDA said a TV ad for Novo Nordisk’s (NOVOB DC) Wegovy was false or misleading, and improperly implied superiority over other GLP-1 drugs and benefits beyond weight loss; the FDA asked the company to address potential violations of US drug advertising rules. In energy, BP (BP/ LN) suspended its quarterly share buyback to strengthen its balance sheet amid weaker oil prices; the last time BP did not launch a quarterly buyback was in 2020. BP also said it was deepening cost-cutting; it raised its cost-reduction target by up to USD 1.5bln through the end of 2027. It reported Q4 net income of USD 1.54bln (exp. 1.53bln), and adj. EPS of 0.10 (exp. 0.099); it also lowered 2026 capex to the lower end of its guided range. In materials, Anglo American (AAL LN) said the sale of De Beers is relatively far advanced, and will almost certainly result in the government of Botswana taking a larger ownership stake, FT reports. In financials, Barclays (BARC LN) said it will return at least GBP 15bln to shareholders through 2028 after beating profit expectations; the bank reported a return on tangible equity of 11.3% for 2025, and is targeting more than 14% by 2028. The bank plans around GBP 2bln of additional efficiency savings, on top of GBP 700mln delivered last year. Q4 revenue was GBP 7.08bln (prev. 6.96bln Y/Y), PBT GBP 1.86bln (exp. 1.76bln), NII GBP 3.73bln (exp. 3.76bln). Standard Chartered (STAN LN) CFO Diego De Giorgi has left the bank after two years to join Apollo (APO) as head of its EMEA business. The bank appointed Peter Burrill as interim group CFO. A senior Italian Treasury official who sits on the board of Banca Monte dei Paschi (BMPS IM) is under investigation for alleged insider trading linked to the lender’s takeover of Mediobanca (MB IM), Ansa reports; Stefano Di Stefano was probed after police seized his phone and is alleged to have bought about EUR 100,000 of Mediobanca and Monte Paschi shares. Santander (SAN SM) global head of research, public policy and institutional relations Barbara Navarro has stepped down, according to Bloomberg; she has already left the bank, and the role will not be replaced, the report said. In tech, TSMC (TSM) reported a +37% Y/Y rise in January revenue to USD 12.7bln, marking its fastest growth in months, exceeding the rate of its FY growth outlook of about 30%, reflecting continued global AI-related demand; however, the comparison may have been affected by Lunar New Year timing. AMS-OSRAM (AMS SW) reported FY25 revenue of EUR 3.32bln with adj. EBITDA of EUR 608mln and an 18.3% margin, generating EUR 144mln of FCF and over EUR 5bln of design wins. AMS launched a EUR 200mln cost-savings programme to 2028, plans to cut about 2,000 jobs and expects lower 2026 revenue after divestments, including selling its non-optical sensor business to Infineon (IFX GY) for EUR 570mln. TeamViewer (TMV GY) Q4 revenue EUR 179.2mln (exp. EUR 193.3mln), adj. EBITDA EUR 87mln (exp. EUR 84.8mln); pro-forma revenue +2% Y/Y at EUR 194.6mln; sees FY26 revenue growth of 0-3% Y/Y, as it pivots toward enterprise customers. In communications, OpenAI rolled out ads in ChatGPT, showing them to some US free-tier users and subscribers to its USD 8/month plan. Advertisers must pay at least USD 200,000 for the OpenAI Ad Pilot Programme, which has attracted Omnicom (OMC), WPP (WPP LN) and Dentsu, according to Ad Week. In consumer sectors, Kering (KER FP) reported accelerating sales momentum in Q4, amid its continued efforts to revive Gucci. Group sales totalled EUR 3.905bln (-9% Y/Y vs the -10% in Q3); Gucci posted a -16% Y/Y sales decline, while comp revenue at Gucci fell 10% in Q4 (exp. -10.4%). Kering expects to return to growth this year. Bernard Arnault appointed his son Antoine to LVMH’s (MC FP) executive committee, reinforcing the family’s role in the luxury group’s future; Antoine oversees image and sustainability, will join his father and sister Delphine on the committee. TUI (TUI GY) Q1 revenue of EUR 4.9bln (exp. EUR 4.86bln), adj. EBIT of EUR 77mln (exp. EUR 78mln), supported by strong holiday and airline performance despite slightly weaker forward bookings; it reaffirmed FY guidance for revenue and adj. EBIT growth, and proposed a EUR 0.10 dividend for FY25. In notable broker updates, E.ON (EOAN GY) was downgraded at Berenberg; Goldman downgrades Clariant (CLN SW), Givaudan (GIVN SW); Goldman Sachs upgrades Arkema (AKE FP), Evonik (EVK GY), Lanxess (LXS GY), Symrise (SY1 GY); Big Yellow Group (BYG LN) was resumed with an Overweight rating at Barclays.

TODAY’S AGENDA:

• DAY AHEAD: From the US, weekly ADP employment data is due (the prior week saw an average of 7,750 per week over the four-week period). Q4 employment costs are also due. US December retail sales are expected to rise by 0.4% M/M (prev. 0.6%), with the ex-gas/autos measure seen rising 0.2% M/M (prev. 0.4%). Business inventories for November, weekly RedBook are also due. The Atlanta Fed will update its GDPnow tracking estimate, which is currently modelling growth of 4.2% in Q4. Today’s speakers’ slate includes Fed’s Hammack and Logan (both 2026 voters). In energy, the EIA will publish its STEO report today; afterhours, the API will publish its weekly gauge of energy inventories. Today’s supply slate includes Netherlands selling EUR 1.5-2bln of 2044 Green DSLs; UK will sell GBP 3.75bln of 2031 debt; Germany will sell EUR 5bln of Bobls; the US will auction USD 58bln 3yr notes. Notable corporates due to report today include: Coca-Cola (KO), Gilead (GILD), Welltower (WELL), S&P (SPGI), CVS Health (CVS), Duke Energy (DUK), Marriott (MAR), Spotify (SPOT), Robinhood (HOOD), Ford (F), Ecolab (ECL), Cloudflare (NET).