Helsinki shares firmer at midday led by Nokia, Outokumpu; Rautaruukki slides

Helsinki shares firmer at midday led by Nokia, Outokumpu; Rautaruukki slides

	Published : Wed, 24 Oct 2007 10:03 By : Agencies Print this Story

HELSINKI (Thomson Financial) - Helsinki shares were higher in midday trade led by Nokia and Outokumpu, while Rautaruukki fell sharply after its third-quarter missed all estimates.

At 12.06 pm, the OMX Helsinki 25 was up 0.48 pct at 3,261.79 and the OMX Helsinki all-share index was 0.61 pct higher at 12,236.77 on 458 mln eur turnover.

Nokia was 0.98 pct firmer at 26.85 eur, extending recent gains.

Outokumpu -- up 4.08 pct to 26.01 eur -- continued strong performance after it was upgraded to 'buy' from 'neutral' at Merrill Lynch, following the company's trading statement yesterday.

In a note this morning, Merrill said although inventories in Germany remain slightly above normal, the stability seen in nickel prices has attracted stainless buyers back to the market.

Outokumpu reported that its order book has been increasing since late September and it expects base prices to increase before year end, noted Merrill.

Although deliveries are still below normal levels and prices close to cycle-lows it is clear that the worst is behind the company, said the broker.

In other news, Outokumpu has been upgraded to 'accumulate' from 'hold' at Glitnir, with a raised target priced of 26-28 eur from 24-26 eur, after the stainless steel maker's third-quarter results yesterday.

The broker said a 12 pct rise in the stock yesterday and further gains today had limited valuation upside, but the outlook for the share is positive in the light of improving market conditions.

The supply/demand balance is improving gradually, while the biggest uncertainties surrounding the stainless steel cycle are easing, Glitnir said.

Meanwhile, sector peer Rautaruukki K was one of the biggest fallers among the key stocks -- down 4.49 pct at 39.10 eur -- after its third quarter earnings report missed market expectations.

Elcoteq was 1.72 pct higher at 4.74 eur.

The company said it may sell off production capacity in Europe as it doubles up efforts to turn in a profit next year after taking fewer-than-expected orders from a key customer.

The announcement came as the company, which provides manufacturing services for the electronics industry, revealed it swung to a pretax loss of 7.5 mln eur during the third quarter on restructuring charges and weak demand.

Of the other companies that released third-quarter reports today, Orion B added 1.88 pct to 17.93 eur.

Orion reported a fall in its third-quarter earnings that were hit by larger expenditures on R&D and marketing.

Amer Sport was up 0.53 pct at 17.16 eur and Stockmann B was 1.13 pct firmer at 33.90 eur.

Both companies are due to publish their third-quarter reports after lunch break today.

Kone added 3.20 pct to 53.80 eur after it was upgraded to 'hold' from 'sell' after reporting an increase in third quarter earnings yesterday, according to traders.

In a note published this morning, ABN Amro said that Kone posted a strong 13 pct EBIT margin in the third quarter, despite sales falling shy of its forecasts, while orders increased by a good 25 pct.

The broker added that it finds valuation stretched, but operational improvement and defensive qualities are likely to provide support.

Elsewhere, Finnair was 0.76 pct lighter at 11.70 eur.

Finnair said its tour operator Aurinkomatkat-Suntours will buy a majority holding in Calypso, a luxury travel agency based in St Petersburg, for an undisclosed sum in a deal that marks its entry into Russia.

azer.sawiris@thomson.com

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