Hello. Welcome to Investing in Europe, a weekly newsletter on what’s happening in European companies and markets, filtered for what matters.
I have been investing in Europe for over a decade and here I share some of my thoughts. You can find me on Twitter
This newsletter is for informational purposes only does not represent investment advice. Always do your own research before investing.
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A few things that happened in European markets:
$STLA: no, this is not Tesla’s mistyped ticker but Stellantis, the new auto company formed from the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Groupe PSA (Peugeot). They had a good trading debut.
The auto industry is quite a competitive one and this is about synergies: €5bn per year is the target. Sergio Marchionne would have been happy, as he was a big believer in consolidation. This is another big step in the direction discussed in a famous presentation FCA published back in 2015 “Confessions of a Capital Junkie”.
In other auto news, Volkswagen had €10bn operating profits in 2020. More importantly, their CEO joined Twitter to troll Musk:
Eurotunnel’s operator Getlink reported a 24% fall in revenues in 2020 due to Covid-19. The number of passengers carried by Eurostar trains fell by 77%, or 2.5mn.
An activist hedge fund has taken a stake in Danone. They are pushing for a change, including a new CEO and the separation of the Chairman and CEO roles.
Danone has been underperforming its peers for quite a while. Link
In other staples news, Remy Cointreau is recovering fast from the Covid-19 crisis. Cognac is one of the fastest-growing spirits (and very enjoyable).
Richemont reported a strong quarter as well, with sales up +5% at constant FX:
Have a good week!