Before the bell: dark clouds over Iran and shadows for solar energy in the US

Flemish executive to lead Proximus. Roularta reopens takeover bid after lukewarm response.

Monday’s gains were quickly erased, and the oil price surged 5%. The dominant story remains Iran, where the United States is sending an aircraft carrier and fighter jets. Economic and corporate news remains scarce, which leaves investors hesitant to take new positions. In the United States, a budget amendment confirmed that subsidies for residential solar panel installations will expire in 2028. Apparently, there had still been hope for a softer outcome, because solar stocks were hammered: Enphase Energy lost 24%, First Solar dropped 17.9%, and SolarEdge plunged 33.4%. In Brussels, Colruyt reported earnings before the bell rather than after, as is usually the case. Revenue rose by 1%, but earnings per share declined by 4.3%. Most of its loss-making French stores were sold for 215 million euro. For the new fiscal year, Colruyt is guiding for stable results. The stock fell by 4%, but the company is known for its traditionally cautious outlooks.

This morning, Japan’s Topix index is up 0.6%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index is down 1.3%. All eyes are on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell today. No rate cut is expected, but his comments will be closely monitored.

Internet pioneer to lead Proximus

Brussels made headlines with the appointment of Stijn Bijnens as CEO of Proximus. Over 25 years ago, Bijnens was one of the first to see the importance of internet security, founding NetVision, later rebranded as Ubizen just before its explosive IPO. During the dot-com boom, anything with “Net” in the name soared — and Ubizen’s stock shot up on its first day of trading due to an avalanche of buy orders. But the company struggled with profitability and never lived up to the early hype. Eventually, it was acquired by a US firm. Bijnens and Ubizen were likely too early. Today, internet security is a cornerstone of business. After 15 years as CEO of investment firm LRM and IT group Cegeka, Bijnens now has the opportunity to unlock Proximus’s potential. “Telecom and IT are converging,” he said — and this time, the timing may be right.

Tone-deaf publisher reopens underwhelming offer

After the first round of its buyout offer, Roularta secured 91.2% of all shares — which seems high, but is disappointing, given that the De Nolf family already owned more than 80%. Fewer than half of the remaining shareholders accepted the offer of 15.50 euro per share. Chairman Rik De Nolf claimed he was “pleased with the successful reception of the offer” (sic). Now, the family is reopening the bid at the same terms. The likelihood of them acquiring 90% of the remaining shares now seems virtually nil. To help fund the squeeze-out and entice hesitant shareholders, Roularta plans to hold an extraordinary general meeting after the second round, proposing an interim dividend of 3 euro. That’s surprising, given that CEO and son-in-law Bouckaert said only weeks ago that the company would not pay dividends. Perhaps the De Nolf family is hoping that the 30% withholding tax retail investors would owe (unlike the family’s holding company) will nudge shareholders toward accepting. The odds of an Exmar-style outcome — with a higher offer in a year — now seem significant.

Did you know…

Donald Trump Jr., eldest son of the US president, has launched ‘Trump Mobile’? The company sells smartphones and accompanying telecom subscriptions.