(Alliance News) - Major European stock exchanges closed the session mixed on Monday as investors prepare for upcoming central bank meetings in key economies such as the US, UK and Japan. The first to announce its monetary policy decisions will be the BoJ itself tomorrow morning.

Thus, the FTSE Mib closed flat at 33,940.96, the Mid-Cap gained 0.2 percent to 47,083.27, the Small-Cap rose 0.6 percent to 27,479.35, and Italy Growth rose 0.2 percent to 8,064.43.

In Europe, London's FTSE 100 closed down 0.1 percent, Frankfurt's DAX 40 in fractional green while Paris' CAC 40 closed down 0.2 percent.

"While the FTSE 100 slipped this afternoon, down about ten points, the draw between Alphabet and Apple gave the Nasdaq 100 a significant boost," explains Chris Beauchamp, Chief Market Analyst at online trading platform IG.

"Alphabet took the lead in U.S. trading, up more than 6 percent on news that it may partner with Apple, allowing the latter to use its Gemini AI in iPhones. Artificial intelligence continues to excite investors, and the news helped the stock recover almost all of its losses in late January. This pushed the Nasdaq 100 higher, shaking off last week's ugly finish, but the Fed meeting and this week's Nvidia conference are still potential short-term hurdles for the broader market," the analyst concluded.

On the Mib, DiaSorin closed up 1.9 percent after Friday's heavy red following the release of results. The company announced Friday that it closed 2023 with net income down to EUR159 million from EUR240 million as of December 31, 2022. Adjusted net income amounted to EUR224 million from EUR319 million in 2022. Revenues in the period stood at EUR1.15 billion from EUR1.4 billion in 2022.

Leonardo finished at the top of the list, up 2.3 percent, followed by BPER Banca Banco BPM, which advanced 2.0 percent and 1.8 percent.

At the bottom, however, finished Nexi and Iveco Group, in the red by 3.3% and 2.5%.

On the cadet segment, Industrie De Nora closed on the bottom by giving up 7.0% after reporting Monday that it closed 2023 with a net profit at EUR231.1 million from EUR89.7 million.

The board of directors proposed the distribution of a dividend of EUR0.123 per share from EUR0.12 in 2022.

Revenues for the period stood at EUR856.4 million compared to EUR852.8 million in the previous year.

On the other hand, Mondadori finished on top with 4.7 percent followed by MFE's A shares -- in the green by 4.6 percent -- and B shares, which closed up 4.6 percent. The company announced Monday that it is set to close 2023 with expected profits in excess of EUR217 million from the year before, not including the accounting effect of the consolidation of ProsiebenSat1. Advertising revenues for the first quarter, meanwhile, are expected to be 5 percent higher than in the same period of 2023, both in Italy and Spain.

Saras -- in the green by 1.5 percent -- reported Friday that it ended 2023 with a reported net profit of EUR313.9 million from EUR416.9 million in 2022.

The board of directors proposed a dividend of EUR0.15 down from EUR0.19 per share related to the 2022 budget.

Ascopiave -- in the red by 0.6 percent -- on Monday said it had approved its strategic plan to 2027, confirming last year's strategic directions and outlining a sustainable growth path in its core businesses of gas distribution and renewable energy, the company explained in a note.

In detail, the plan calls for Ebitda to 2027 of EUR139 million and net income of EUR42 million.

PharmaNutra -- in the red by 0.3 percent -- reported on Friday its results for the 2023 financial year, which closed with a profit of EUR12.8 million from EUR15.1 million in the previous year.

Consolidated sales revenue in 2023 was EUR100.2 million, up 21 percent from EUR83.4 million in 2022.

On the Small-Cap, the board of Bioera-which closed on top up 24 percent-on Sunday evening approved the draft budget for 2023, which ended with a loss of EUR3.5 million from EUR5.4 million in the previous year.

Total revenues were EUR1.4 million compared to EUR3.7 million a year earlier in the same period.

It follows GPI - up 7.3 percent - after announcing Friday that its board of directors approved the sale of Argentea's entire share capital to Zucchetti Hospitality for EUR99 million or so, based on Argentea's equity value of EUR105 million or so.

IRCE -- up 1.1 percent -- on Friday reported revenues of EUR402.8 million in 2023 from EUR454.7 million as of Dec. 31, 2022.

The period ended with a profit of EUR8.2 million from EUR9.2 million in 2022.

Ebitda as of Dec. 31 was EUR21.4 million from EUR19.4 million in 2022.

Landi Renzo finished 3.7 percent in the red after reporting that it ended 2023 with revenues of EUR303.3 million, of which EUR212.9 million related to Green Transporatation and EUR90.4 million related to Clean Tech Solutions.

Preliminary adjusted Ebitda is EUR7 million, of which EUR3.1 million is for Green Transportation and EUR3.9 million for Clean Tech Solutions.

I Grandi Viaggi - in the red by 0.8 percent - reported on Friday that it closed the first quarter of 2024 with a loss of EUR1.3 million, "due to seasonality," the company pointed out in a note, and in line with the negative result of the same period last year.

Among SMEs, the board of Italian Wine Brands -- in the green by 5.3 percent -- on Monday approved its financial results for 2023, reporting a net result of EUR16.5 million compared to EUR14.2 million last year.

The board thus proposed the distribution of a dividend of EUR0.50 per share, up from EUR0.10 a year earlier.

Intred--up 3.5 percent--reported Monday that it closed fiscal year 2023 with a net profit of EUR8.2 million from EUR8.7 million in 2022, down slightly due to higher financial charges related to the company's increased borrowing to finance new investments on its proprietary network.

Siav closed up 18 percent after reporting in recent days that its subsidiary Mitric has entered into a strategic distribution agreement with Gulf Software Distribution, a major player in IBM's value-added distribution in the Middle East.

In New York, the Dow rises 0.3 percent, the Nasdaq advances 0.9 percent while the S&P 500 is up 0.8 percent.

Among currencies, the euro changes hands at USD1.0873 versus USD1.0887 recorded at Friday's European stock close, while the pound is worth USD1.2724 from USD1.2735 on Friday evening.

Brent crude is worth USD86.31 per barrel versus USD85.96 per barrel at Friday's close. Gold, on the other hand, trades at USD2,159.77 an ounce from USD2,167.35 an ounce Friday night.

On Tuesday's economic calendar, the Bank of Japan's interest rate decision is expected at 0400 CET with a press conference at 0730 CET while industrial production data will be released at 0530 CET.

At 0800 CET the Swiss trade balance is expected and at 1100 CET there will be a 20-year Gilr auction, along with the release of the ZEW index of economic conditions and sentiment for Germany and the Eurozone.

At the same time, Eurostat will report the fourth quarter labor cost index.

In the afternoon, at 1330 CET, U.S. building permits and new construction data are expected while February inflation will come from Canada.

Several results are expected in Piazza Affari including Confinvest, FILA and GEL.

By Chiara Bruschi, Alliance News reporter

Comments and questions to redazione@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2024 Alliance News IS Italian Service Ltd. All rights reserved.