MW: European stocks losing steam; Ryanair shares fall
LONDON (MarketWatch) — European stocks slipped Monday, with the region’s stock benchmark easing from its best monthly performance in more than three years.
The Stoxx Europe 600 SXXP, -0.43% reversed course and fell 0.2% to 366.25. The index on Friday marked a January rise of 7.2%, the strongest percentage gain since October 2011, according to FactSet data.
Among decliners, Ryanair Holdings PLC RY4B, -3.86% shares fell 2.7%, with the budget airline sounding a cautious tone on profit growth. “As lower oil prices kick in over the next two years, Ryanair intends to pass on much, if not all, of these savings to our rapidly growing customer base in the form of lower fares and therefore our profit growth expectations will be modest in FY16.”
Ryanair did say it plans to start a share buyback plan of 400 million euros ($451 million) and raised its earnings outlook for the current financial year.
But Julius Baer BAER, +6.54% outperformed, climbing 6.4% after the Swiss private-banking services firm said its implementing a plan to cut 100 million francs ($108 million) in costs in an effort to soften the impact of the strengthening franc. The company also declared a dividend of 1 franc per share, outstripping analysts expectations.
On the benchmarks, Italy’s FTSE MIB FTSEMIB, -0.47% fell 0.3% to 20,434.91, with banking stocks under pressure, including a 1% pullback for Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena BMPS, +0.50% Russia’s Micex XX:MCX was also lower, falling 1% to 1,632.01.
Spain’s IBEX 35 IBEX, -1.74% shed 1.5% to 10,246.10.
But Germany’s DAX DAX, +0.34% rose 0.2% to 10,737 and France’s CAC PX1, +0.00% climbed 0.3% to 4,618.67. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 UKX, +0.14% moved up 0.2% to 6,765.012.
Among data released Monday, the final January reading of the eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers index confirmed the flash estimate of 51.0, up from December’s reading of 50.6, according to data firm Markit. The gain was tempered by a decline in activity in Italy, France, Greece and Austria. The PMI in Greece fell to a 15-month low.
The euro EURUSD, +0.27% was trading at $1.1338 compared with $1.341 ahead of the report.
The pound GBPUSD, -0.30% briefly rose to $1.5066 after the U.K. manufacturing PMI rose to 53.0 in January, but the currency later traded at $1.5031.
