Before the bell: Pow! Bam! Zap!

Will a superhero save the markets in 2025? Cofinimmo makes a last-minute sale, and Nike easily outpaces its low expectations.

After Jerome Powell rattled the markets on Tuesday—when European markets were already closed—European stocks also struggled yesterday. The average European stock dropped 1.6%, while the Brussels Bel20 fared slightly better, losing 1.1%. Tessenderlo Group tumbled 7% after issuing a profit warning before the market opened. Analysts lowered their price targets but remain unanimously positive about the valuation of the chemicals company. Across the Atlantic, investors caught a breather. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq remained flat. Meanwhile, Darden Restaurants surged 14.7%. The largest full-service restaurant operator in the U.S. reported a sales increase of 4.9%, with LongHorn Steakhouse leading the way with a 7.5% rise in sales. Higher prices didn’t deter Americans from dining out, but they appear to be opting for more affordable choices.

This morning in Asia, Japan’s Topix slipped 0.3%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index remained unchanged. In Belgium, the National Bank’s business confidence barometer is due today, along with December’s European consumer confidence data. The U.S. will also release its final consumer confidence survey for the year, conducted by the University of Michigan.

Going, Going… Gone!

Healthcare real estate company Cofinimmo announced it has sold 110 million euros worth of properties before the year’s end, meeting its revised 2024 sales target. This year, Cofinimmo sold over 215 million euros of its real estate portfolio. At the start of the year, ceo Jean-Pierre Hanin had set a 320 million euros sales target, which was later adjusted to 215 million euros. Simultaneously, Cofinimmo invested 175 million euros in 2024. With sales outpacing purchases, the company retained 40 million euros, which will help reduce its debt ratio to approximately 43%. The sale of office buildings has proven slower than expected, putting downward pressure on Cofinimmo’s market value. Since January, the stock has lost 26%.

Swoosh

Sportswear giant Nike reported an 8% drop in revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal year, reaching 12.4 billion dollars. Earnings per share fell 24% to 0.78 dollars compared to the same period last year. However, this exceeded analysts’ expectations of 0.63 dollars per share. New ceo Elliott Hill is already surpassing expectations. Former ceo John Donahoe was criticized for overly relying on retro sneakers, which had grown stale among consumers, prompting a shift to competitors. Nike introduced a refreshed lineup to turn things around. Investors were quickly convinced, sending the stock 9% higher in after-hours trading. Despite this, Nike’s share price is down more than 20% this year, significantly underperforming the S&P 500, which is up 23.7%.

Did you know…

American media has coined a new acronym for the “Magnificent 7” plus Broadcom. While the FANG stocks are now a distant memory, Broadcom, Apple, Tesla, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, Alphabet, and Nvidia collectively form BATMMAAN and are expected to protect the markets from falling in 2025.

This article was translated from Dutch and was originally published on Spaarvarkens.be.