The Swiss stock market ended in disorganized order, close to balance on Wednesday. After spending most of the session in the green, erasing a small part of the losses of the day before, the indices returned to the red in the wake of Wall Street before diverging at the end. The SMI once again finished below the 11,600 point mark.
In New York, Wall Street lost ground in the morning. Investors held their breath before the publication of Nvidia’s figures after the close.
“One of the most anticipated days of the results season, if not the most anticipated, has finally arrived,” commented Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya. The American semiconductor giant Nvidia must present its third quarter results after the close of Wall Street, an event awaited “impatiently”, added John Plassard of Mirabaud Banque.
The war in Ukraine also came back to weigh on investor morale, after the Ukrainian army fired American Atacms and British Storm Shadow missiles on Russian territory. “No de-escalation is looming in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, rather the opposite is happening with an acceleration of the spiral of tensions,” remarked Frank Sohlleder. For the ActivTrades analyst, “this situation could continue to weigh on the markets”.
The SMI ended in balance -0.02% at 11,539.64 points, lower at 11,512.46 points and higher at 11,641.97 points. Like the SLI which gained 0.05% to 1903.08 points and the SPI which lost 0.01% to 15,373.36 points. Of the 30 star stocks, 12 advanced and 18 retreated.
Today’s podium consists of Holcim (+1.8%), Julius Bär (+1.3%) and Sonova (+1.0%).
The construction materials giant was awarded price targets raised by three analysts – JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank and Julius Bär – all three of whom also recommend the stock for purchase. Despite a decline in turnover, the cement manufacturer managed to significantly increase its profit margin, notes the Zurich bank.
The Zurich asset manager will present its financial performance after ten months on Thursday. Analysts expect assets under management of 476 billion francs.
In partnership with the investment company Portobello Capital, the Zug-based asset manager Partners Group (+0.9%) has acquired for an undisclosed amount a minority stake in the Spanish group Bluesea Hotels, which operates a portfolio of 25 hotels three and four stars in Spain.
The bottom of the day goes to VAT Group (-2.4%), behind Adecco and Kühne+Nagel (each -1.1%).
The heavyweights, Roche (-0.5%), Nestlé (-0.2%) and Novartis (é-0.1%) weighed more or less clearly on the index.
As part of its investor day, the inspection and certification giant SGS (-0.2%) reaffirmed the main lines of its strategy for the current financial year and the next three, after having reactivated its growth program through acquisitions. The Geneva-based multinational has also announced the acquisition of the North American nuclear testing specialist MP Machinery.
In the broader market, the insurer Baloise (-0.6%) reported results more or less in line with expectations for the first nine months of 2024.
The secure access specialist Dormakaba (+0.5%) confirmed its objectives and announced savings of 40 million on the occasion of its investor day.
The wealth manager EFG International (-1.4%) generated, over ten months, a net profit exceeding 260 million francs, up 8% compared to the same period a year earlier.
The real estate company Intershop (+0.8%) has purchased a 35,600 m2 plot of land in the Zuchwil industrial and commercial zone in the canton of Solothurn from Activ-Gewerbe-Park. The annual rental potential is estimated at 4 million francs.
The energy company Romande Energie (+0.2%) is investing in the Friborg start-up Yord, specializing in the intelligent optimization of building heating systems. The amount invested is not specified. (AWP)
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