[MARKET ANALYSIS] European bourses mixed, ABF LN confirms Primark demerger; US equity futures muted as AAPL announces CEO transition

European bourses (STOXX 600 U/C) are modestly rebounding from Monday’s losses, however the CAC 40 and SMI are failing to bounce. The DAX 40 is the outperformer, with most of the index in the green but cautiously awaiting SAP earnings on Thursday.
Sectors are broadly gaining. Technology and Utilities top the pile while Food, Beverage & Tobacco lags as AB Foods weighs on the sector. Despite reaffirming its FY outlook, failure to show revenue growth and the announcement of the demerger of Primark from the food business have hit the Co.’s shares.
Other key movers include British Land (+2.0%), delivering an update in which FY26 underlying EPS is ahead of guidance and raising its FY27 guidance; Beiersdorf (-3.3%), missing Q1 revenue estimates; Allianz (+1.5%), upgraded to buy from neutral at Goldman Sachs.
US equity futures trade muted ahead of the Senate Fed chair confirmation hearing for Kevin Warsh and US retail sales. On the single stock news, Apple (-0.8% pre-market) announced that Tim Cook is to step down as CEO, to be replaced by John Ternus. For the broader S&P 500, JPMorgan revised its year-end PT to 7,600, stating that there is a meaningful risk that the market enters a short-term consolidation phase before resuming its upward trajectory.