PayPal Stock Drops. The CFO Delivers a Sobering Outlook. — Barrons.com

Investing.com – Germany stocks were mixed after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Technology, Utilities and Food & Beverages sectors led shares higher while losses in the Construction, Chemicals and Insurance sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Frankfurt, the DAX lost 0.12%, while the MDAX index lost 0.71%, and the TecDAX index gained 0.32%.

The best performers of the session on the DAX were Airbus Group SE (ETR:AIRG), which rose 3.92% or 7.48 points to trade at 198.06 at the close. Meanwhile, E.ON SE (ETR:EONGn) added 3.43% or 0.52 points to end at 15.83 and Infineon Technologies AG NA O.N. (ETR:IFXGn) was up 2.70% or 0.96 points to 36.74 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Commerzbank AG O.N. (ETR:CBKG), which fell 2.89% or 1.00 points to trade at 33.58 at the close. Mercedes Benz Group AG (ETR:MBGn) declined 2.67% or 1.58 points to end at 57.65 and BASF SE NA O.N. (ETR:BASFN) was down 2.08% or 0.94 points to 44.22.

The top performers on the MDAX were AUTO1 Group SE (ETR:AG1G) which rose 4.77% to 24.58, Sartorius AG VZO O.N. (ETR:SATG_p) which was up 4.23% to settle at 258.70 and Dr Ing hc F Porsche AG Preferred (ETR:P911_p) which gained 2.23% to close at 44.89.

The worst performers were Hugo Boss AG NA O.N. (ETR:BOSSn) which was down 9.86% to 35.29 in late trade, Thyssenkrupp AG O.N. (ETR:TKAG) which lost 8.89% to settle at 8.88 and Aroundtown Property Holdings PLC (ETR:AT1) which was down 4.00% to 2.74 at the close.

The top performers on the TecDAX were SUSS MicroTec SE (ETR:SMHNn) which rose 7.37% to 36.42, SMA Solar Technology AG (ETR:S92G) which was up 5.41% to settle at 35.06 and Sartorius AG VZO O.N. (ETR:SATG_p) which gained 4.23% to close at 258.70.

The worst performers were Nemetschek AG O.N. (ETR:NEKG) which was down 1.99% to 93.75 in late trade, Qiagen NV (ETR:QIA) which lost 1.20% to settle at 39.92 and Deutsche Telekom AG Na (ETR:DTEGn) which was down 1.16% to 27.20 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by 325 to 314 and 25 ended unchanged.

Shares in SMA Solar Technology AG (ETR:S92G) rose to 52-week highs; rising 5.41% or 1.80 to 35.06.

The DAX volatility index, which measures the implied volatility of DAX options, was down 2.10% to 17.32.

Gold Futures for February delivery was up 0.38% or 16.05 to $4,236.85 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in January rose 0.68% or 0.40 to hit $59.04 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract rose 0.45% or 0.28 to trade at $62.73 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.30% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP unchanged 0.56% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.40% at 98.90.

Investing.com – France stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Technology, Utilities and Oil & Gas sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Paris, the CAC 40 rose 0.16%, while the SBF 120 index gained 0.11%.

The best performers of the session on the CAC 40 were Stellantis NV (EPA:STLAM), which rose 7.64% or 0.70 points to trade at 9.82 at the close. Meanwhile, STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA) added 5.75% or 1.16 points to end at 21.33 and Airbus Group SE (EPA:AIR) was up 4.00% or 7.62 points to 198.12 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Vinci SA (EPA:SGEF), which fell 2.01% or 2.45 points to trade at 119.40 at the close. ArcelorMittal SA (AS:MT) declined 1.93% or 0.72 points to end at 36.60 and Eurofins Scientific SE (EPA:EUFI) was down 1.31% or 0.78 points to 58.58.

The top performers on the SBF 120 were Stellantis NV (EPA:STLAM) which rose 7.64% to 9.82, Atos SE (EPA:ATOS) which was up 5.91% to settle at 47.83 and STMicroelectronics NV (EPA:STMPA) which gained 5.75% to close at 21.33.

The worst performers were Eutelsat Communications SA (EPA:ETL) which was down 5.71% to 1.97 in late trade, Lectra SA (EPA:LECS) which lost 4.24% to settle at 23.70 and Solutions 30 SE (EPA:S30) which was down 4.12% to 0.91 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Paris Stock Exchange by 271 to 218 and 79 ended unchanged.

The CAC 40 VIX, which measures the implied volatility of CAC 40 options, was unchanged 0.00% to 18.96 a new 52-week high.

Gold Futures for February delivery was up 0.37% or 15.80 to $4,236.60 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in January rose 0.65% or 0.38 to hit $59.02 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract rose 0.43% or 0.27 to trade at $62.72 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.30% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP fell 0.57% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.41% at 98.89.

Investing.com – Belgium stocks were lower after the close on Wednesday, as losses in the Consumer Goods, Financials and Industrials sectors led shares lower.

At the close in Brussels, the BEL 20 declined 0.30%.

The best performers of the session on the BEL 20 were Melexis NV (EBR:MLXS), which rose 4.77% or 2.55 points to trade at 56.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Argen-X (EBR:ARGX) added 2.25% or 17.60 points to end at 799.00 and Umicore SA (EBR:UMI) was up 1.10% or 0.17 points to 15.60 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were D’Ieteren NV (EBR:IETB), which fell 2.10% or 3.10 points to trade at 144.50 at the close. Warehouses de Pauw Comm VA (EBR:WDPP) declined 1.62% or 0.36 points to end at 21.82 and UCB SA (EBR:UCB) was down 1.32% or 3.20 points to 239.80.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Brussels Stock Exchange by 56 to 45 and 8 ended unchanged.

Gold Futures for February delivery was up 0.40% or 17.00 to $4,237.80 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in January rose 0.67% or 0.39 to hit $59.03 a barrel, while the February Brent oil contract rose 0.45% or 0.28 to trade at $62.73 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.29% to 1.17, while EUR/GBP fell 0.57% to 0.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.41% at 98.89.

Investing.com -- Spirit AeroSystems (NYSE:SPR) stock rose 2.3% while Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares edged lower after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it will allow Boeing’s $8.3 billion acquisition of Spirit to proceed with significant divestitures.

The regulatory approval requires Boeing to divest several key Spirit assets to address antitrust concerns in the large commercial and military aircraft markets. Under the proposed consent order, Boeing must sell Spirit’s businesses that supply aerostructures to Airbus SE (EPA:AIR) along with Spirit’s Subang, Malaysia operations that currently serve both Boeing and Airbus.

"American commercial travelers and our military deserve to fly on dependable aircraft, manufactured with reliable components," said David J. Shaw, Principal Deputy Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition in the announcement.

The FTC’s order addresses concerns that the merger could have given Boeing the ability to raise costs or degrade Airbus’ access to critical aircraft components. The Airbus-related assets will be divested to Airbus itself, while the Malaysian operations will go to Composites Technology Research Malaysia Sdn. Bhd (CTRM).

Additionally, the order requires Boeing and Spirit to continue providing aerostructures and services to competing contractors for military aircraft programs. Spirit must maintain existing contracts with other contractors and remain available as a supplier for future competitors.

The FTC voted 2-0 to accept the consent agreement, which will now undergo a 30-day public comment period. The Commission noted it worked closely with competition agencies in the European Union and United Kingdom, as well as the U.S. Department of War to analyze the acquisition and potential remedies.

This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.

Investing.com -- British stocks traded in the red on Wednesday afternoon, while the pound rose against the dollar, climbing above the $1.33 mark, as wider European markets turned green.

The blue-chip index FTSE 100 dropped 0.1% and the British GBP/USD rose 0.7% against the dollar to 1.3315. 

The DAX index in Germany was flat, and the CAC 40 in France rose 0.2%. 

UK round up

The UK services sector saw a slowdown in business activity growth during November as demand conditions weakened and client confidence remained fragile. The S&P Global UK Services PMI Business Activity Index dropped to 51.3 in November from 52.3 in October, indicating only a marginal expansion in service sector output. The data was collected between November 12-26. Service providers reported a renewed downturn in order books, with new work declining for the first time since July, though the decrease was slight. Export sales continued to soften, with the rate of decline accelerating to the fastest since June. The weaker performance was attributed to intense competition and challenging economic conditions in major global markets, which affected international demand for UK services.

Travis Perkins (LON:TPK) shares fell 2.3% after Jefferies downgraded the UK building materials distributor to "underperform" from "hold." The investment bank set a price target of 535 pence for Travis Perkins, suggesting a potential 16% downside from the current share price of 634 pence. Jefferies cited concerns that the company’s elevated valuation of 18.6 times its estimated 2026 price-to-earnings ratio already factors in expectations for a turnaround under a new chief executive who will join in early 2026. The bank also expressed doubts about the core Merchanting division’s ability to restore its profit margin to historical levels of 7-8% over the next three to five years.

ZIGUP PLC (LON:ZIG) shares jumped more than 15% after the integrated mobility solutions provider announced strong first-half results and unveiled a new efficiency programme. The company reported underlying profit before tax of £81.7 million for the six months ended October 31, 2025, slightly below the £82 million reported in the same period last year. Despite the marginal decline in half-year profit, ZIGUP raised its full-year outlook, stating it now expects underlying profit to be "at least at the top" of the current £150-155 million range of analyst expectations.

Paragon Banking Group (LON:PAGPA) shares fell about 6.1% after the specialist lender warned of a sharper-than-expected decline in net interest margin for 2026, overshadowing its solid full-year results. The company reported statutory profit before tax of £256.5 million for the year ended September 30, representing a 1.1% increase from the previous year. Operating profit before adjusting items showed a modest rise of 0.4% to £293.9 million, while pre-provision profits demonstrated stronger growth, increasing 5.9% to £335.8 million. The lender also posted underlying basic earnings per share of 109.7 pence, marking an 8.5% improvement.

Spire Healthcare Group plc (LON:SPI) announced that it expects its full-year adjusted EBITDA for 2025 to be around the bottom end of its guidance range of £270m to £285m, despite positive trading in recent months. The UK independent healthcare provider reported 3.6% year-over-year revenue growth for the four-month period from July to October 2025, following 4.9% growth in the first half of the year.

The engineering company Weir Group PLC (LON:WEIR) confirmed that its full-year guidance remains unchanged from its July 31 update. Weir continues to expect growth in constant currency revenue and operating profit, with operating margins of approximately 20% and free operating cash conversion between 90% and 100%.

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (LON:BLPU) has announced a new strategic collaboration with Google Cloud focused on technology innovation, AI-powered learning and core publishing infrastructure. The partnership will combine Bloomsbury’s publishing expertise with Google Cloud’s secure AI technologies, including NotebookLM, Vertex AI and Gemini Enterprise. Gemini is Google’s most capable family of multimodal AI models, while LearnLM is a specialized version fine-tuned for learning and knowledge synthesis.

Smiths Group PLC (LON:SMIN) has agreed to sell its Smiths Detection business to funds advised by CVC Capital Partners for an enterprise value of £2.0 billion, representing 16.3x headline operating profit. The transaction, which follows the recently announced sale of Smiths Interconnect, is expected to generate net cash proceeds of approximately £1.85 billion. Completion is anticipated in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and consultation with the French works council.

HSBC Holdings PLC (LON:HSBA) has appointed Brendan Nelson as Group Chair, the bank announced Wednesday. Nelson, who has been serving as interim Group Chair since October 1, joined the HSBC Board in September 2023. The appointment comes after a comprehensive selection process that evaluated both internal and external candidates for the position.

Thames Water has issued a warning about "material uncertainty which may cast significant doubt" on its status as a going concern. The water supplier, which serves 16 million customers in south-east England, indicated that a collapse into government control under a special administration regime (SAR) could happen "in the very near term." Thames Water stated this form of temporary nationalization might occur if it fails to agree on terms for a formal takeover by its controlling lenders.