European Stocks Fluctuate: Peugeot Climbs, Intercell Declines

(Bloomberg) - European stocks fluctuated between gains and losses as a rally by automakers offset declines among insurers and health-care companies. Asian stocks rose and U.S. index futures were little changed.

PSA Peugeot Citroen

Europe’s second-biggest carmaker, advanced 2 percent after saying the year started “better than expectations.” Prudential Plc, the U.K. insurer that yesterday agreed to buy an Asian division from American International Group Inc., fell for a second day. Intercell AG sank 7.5 percent after the Austrian vaccine maker said fourth-quarter profit dropped 76 percent.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index

Rose less than 0.1 percent to 248.92 at 10:17 a.m. in London, having swung between gains and losses at least 11 times. The gauge has fallen for the past two months amid concern over budget deficits in Greece, Spain and Portugal and as China moved to restrict lending and stop its economy from overheating.

S&P 500 Futures

Futures on the S&P 500 Index advanced less than 0.1 percent today, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.8 percent to a five-week high.

Prudential Plc

Lost 6.1 percent to 497.7 pence, extending yesterday’s 12 percent plunge and dragging a gauge of insurance companies to the biggest drop among 19 industry groups in the Stoxx 600. The U.K.’s biggest insurer’s credit ratings may be downgraded by S&P after agreeing to buy AIA Group Ltd. for $35.5 billion in cash and stock.

‘Transform’ Prudential

“The transaction will transform Prudential’s size and profile, significantly enhancing its presence in numerous growth markets across Asia,” S&P said. “It will also dilute one of the key rating strengths of the group, namely the contribution from the U.K.”

Intercell

Sank 7.5 percent to 19.64 euros. The Austrian vaccine maker working with Novartis AG and GlaxoSmithKline Plc said fourth-quarter profit dropped to 7.5 million euros ($10 million) from 31 million euros a year ago. It was expected to post a profit of 9.45 million euros, according to the median of six estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

Kuehne & Nagel International AG

The world’s largest sea- freight forwarder, jumped 5.2 percent to 104.5 Swiss francs. The stock was raised to “buy” from “hold” at Deutsche Bank AG.

Luxottica, Bank Sarasin

Luxottica Group SpA slid 2.8 percent to 19.16 euros. The owner of the Ray-Ban and Oakley sunglasses brands said annual net income fell 17 percent to 314.8 million euros, missing the 326 million-euro average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Bank Sarasin & Cie.

Gained 2.9 percent to 35.7 francs. The Swiss wealth manager controlled by Rabobank Groep NV raised its target for assets under management after full-year profit advanced 5.6 percent on a record cash inflow from clients.

Georg Fischer AG

Europe’s largest maker of iron castings for cars, slipped 2.4 percent to 312.25 francs. The company reported a full-year loss of 238 million francs ($219 million), compared with a profit of 69 million francs a year earlier, as demand for its car parts fell.

Cookson Group Plc

Plunged 4.2 percent to 448.6 pence after posting a loss that was wider than analysts had estimated. The net loss for 2009 was 48.5 million pounds, Cookson said. That missed the 27 million-pound average analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg.

Allied Irish Banks Plc

The country’s second-biggest lender by market value, advanced 4 percent to 1.04 euros after reporting a narrower-than-estimated full-year net loss. The loss of 2.41 billion euros compared with a 2.5 billion-euro median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Vedanta Resources Plc sank 4.7 percent to 2,518 pence. The largest copper producer in India said it’s offering about $775 million of convertible bonds due 2017.