Ticker	Volume	Price	Price Delta
DJIA	12,454.80	-74.92	-0.60%
S&P 500	1,317.82	-2.86	-0.22%
Nasdaq	2,837.53	-1.85	-0.07%

Ticker	Volume	Price	Price Delta
STOXX 50	2,161.87	+5.35	0.25%
FTSE 100	5,351.53	+1.48	0.03%
DAX	6,339.94	+24.05	0.38%

Ticker	Volume	Price	Price Delta
Nikkei	8,580.39	+17.01	0.20%
TOPIX	722.11	-0.14	-0.02%
Hang Seng	18,713.40	+47.01	0.25%

Eni, GDF, Infineon, Novartis, Piaggio, Swisscom: European Equity Preview

By Nikolaj Gammeltoft - 2010-08-08T23:01:00Z

The following companies’ shares may have unusual moves in European trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses and prices are from the last close.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 1.1 percent to 258.71. The Stoxx 50 Index decreased 1 percent to 2,511.98. The Euro Stoxx 50 Index, a benchmark for nations using the euro, lost 1.4 percent to 2,779.34.

Aedifica SA (AED BB): Belgium’s largest residential real- estate investment fund obtained 30 million euros ($39.8 million) in credit lines from BNP Paribas SA over a three-year period. The interest rates weren’t disclosed. Aedifica shares rose 49 cents, or 1.2 percent, to 42.90 euros.

Allied Irish Banks Plc (ALBK ID): The Irish government will probably end up with a majority stake in Ireland’s second- biggest lender by market value, Green Party finance spokesman Dan Boyle said. The stock declined 1.8 percent to 92 euro cents.

Assicurazioni Generali SpA (G IM): Europe’s third-biggest insurer wants to expand in South America, Chairman Cesare Geronzi told il Piccolo in an interview. The shares fell 25 cents, or 1.6 percent, to 15.55 euros.

BP Plc (BP/ LN): The oil company said the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico is effectively plugged with cement poured last week. The shares rose 0.5 percent to 425.35 pence.

Eni SpA (ENI IM), Gas Plus SpA (GSP IM): Gas Plus agreed to buy Padana Energia from Eni SpA for 175 million euros plus 25 million euros of possible “adjustment.” Gas Plus also has an option to buy Adriatica Idrocarburi from Eni by Sept. 30. Eni shares lost 6 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 16.34 euros. Gas Plus rose 21.5 cents, or 4.1 percent, to 5.47 euros.

Eutelsat Communications SA (ETL FP): Demand for satellite- transmission capacity for television should rise 90 percent in the coming decade, boosted by high-definition and 3D TV, Investir said, citing Chief Executive Officer Michel de Rosen. Eutelsat shares declined 1.3 percent to 28 euros.

GDF Suez (GSZ FP): The owner of Europe’s biggest natural- gas network and International Power Plc (IPR LN) will announce a merger on Aug. 10, the Sunday Times said, without saying where it got the information. GDF fell 1.8 percent to 26.19 euros. International Power advanced 0.1 percent to 366.4 pence.

Infineon Technologies AG (IFX GY): Europe’s second-largest chipmaker was rated “buy” in new coverage at Evolution Securities Ltd. with a 12-month share price estimate of 6 euros. The stock lost 0.3 percent to 5.04 euros.

Metro AG (MEO GY): Chief Executive Officer Eckhard Cordes said he would favor a merger of Kaufhof, his company’s department store chain, with rival Karstadt, Welt am Sonntag reported. A sale of Metro’s Real hypermarket unit is unlikely after a restructuring boosted earnings, Cordes said.

The shares fell 0.3 percent to 40.87 euros.

Nordea Bank AB (NDA SS) and TeliaSonera AB (TLSN SS): Sweden’s government will sell assets worth 100 billion kroner ($14 billion) if re-elected, including reducing its stakes in Nordea and TeliaSonera, Dagens Industri said, citing Finance Minister Anders Borg. Nordea fell 1.4 percent to 73.70 kronor. TeliaSonera slipped 0.2 percent to 53.25 kronor.

Novartis AG (NOVN VX): Alcon Inc.’s Independent Director Committee won’t accept the merger contract with Novartis if the pharmaceutical maker doesn’t increase its offer for minority shareholders and would defend its interests in court, Thomas G. Plaskett, chairman of the committee, told Finanz und Wirtschaft in an interview. Novartis fell 1.2 percent to 51.75 francs.

Piaggio & C SpA (PIA IM): The scooter maker was downgraded to “add” from “buy” at Banca IMI SpA with a 12-month price estimate of 2.47 euros. The stock fell 1.5 percent to 2.14 euros.

Swisscom AG (SCMN VX): Chief Executive Officer Carsten Schloter said Switzerland’s largest phone company sold fewer mobile phones in June and July as many customers waited for Apple Inc.’s iPhone 4, SonntagsZeitung reported. The stock fell 0.9 percent to 385.1 Swiss francs.

Telecom Italia SpA (TIT IM): The Italian phone company’s Brazilian unit Tim Participacoes SA said it has no information in connection with a report in Brazil’s O Globo newspaper that Vodafone Group Plc (VOD LN) may buy a stake in Tim. Telecom shares added 1.6 cents, or 1.6 percent, to 1.021 euros.

Vivendi SA (VIV FP): The French company’s Universal Music Group, the world’s largest record company, pulled its videos from Viacom Inc.’s MTV websites after talks failed on a new syndication agreement. Vevo, the online video site co-owned by Universal, was negotiating to install its advertising-supported video player on the websites of Viacom’s MTV, VH1 and CMT cable channels, two people with knowledge of the situation said. Vivendi fell 2.2 percent, to 18.26 euros.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nikolaj Gammeltoft in New York at ngammeltoft@bloomberg.net