euro zone inflation, GDP and earnings

German carmaker Volkswagen on Tuesday said its operating profit dropped by 20% in the first quarter as weaker demand for its premium brands drove a drop in sales.

Operating profit came in at 4.6 billion euros ($4.9 billion) in the first three months of 2024, the company said. Operating profit had been 5.7 billion euros over the same time period in 2023.

Europe-traded shares of Volkswagen were last down 2.19% at 8:59 London time.

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— Sophie Kiderlin

Global automaker Stellantis on Tuesday reported a 12% decline in revenue in the first quarter, citing lower sales and foreign exchange effects, even as net pricing held firm.

Shares of Stellantis were down 1.6% as of 8:55 London time.

Chief Financial Officer Natalie Knight said year-over-year shipment and net revenue comparisons were difficult due to the company’s transition to a “next generation product portfolio manufactured on new platforms.”

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—Jenni Reid

Europe stocks were mixed on Tuesday, with the benchmark Stoxx 600 index opening slightly lower and trading 0.07% lower at 8:20 am

The UK’s FTSE 100 was up 0.38%, while France’s CAC 40 was down by 0.1% and Germany’s DAX was 0.1% lower.

— Sophie Kiderlin

German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz posted a 30% annual drop in first-quarter earnings before interest and tax to 3.863 billion euros ($4.13 billion) on Tuesday, coming in below a LSEG projection of 3.87 billion euros for the period.

Total unit sales at the group’s Mercedes-Benz cars division declined by 8% to 462,978 units, with the company attributing the fall to model changes and supply chain bottlenecks in the Chinese market. Sales in the carmaker’s Top-End category accounted for 14% of the first-quarter total, with the availability of top-end products curbed by model transition of the G-Class and the Mercedes-AMG derivatives of the E-Class and GLC.

“Current supply bottlenecks are on the way to easing in regard to the GLC and E-Class, with further improvements expected,” the company said in its outlook disclosures. “Sales levels in the first quarter are seen as the trough, with second quarter volumes expected to be better.”

Mercedes touted the fast-charging capabilities and long-range battery of the Concept CLA Class.

Mercedes Benz

Sales at the Mercedes-Benz Vans division meanwhile increased by 7% year-on-year to 105,425 vehicles in the first three months of the year, in what the company said was a new record for the first quarter.

“Mercedes-Benz wants to hold and defend pricing at current levels,” the carmaker said, forecasting 2024 group revenue in line with the previous year and a 10-12% range in adjusted return on sales over the period.

— Ruxandra Iordache

Danish brewer Carlsberg posted higher sales in the first quarter, slightly outperforming analyst expectations according to Reuters data.

Volumes rose by 0.2% year on year in Western Europe, by 3.1% in Asia and by 2.2% in Central and Eastern Europe and India, following an overall 0.5% decline in sales through 2023.

Revenue grew 4.4% to 17.1 billion Danish krona ($2.45 billion) in the quarter.

“If we look at the trading environment, we are definitely pleased with the beginning of the year,” Carlsberg CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Tuesday.

“But there are still clouds hanging over us and the rest of the industry, it’s a tough consumer sentiment out there, whether we’re looking at our European businesses or our Asian businesses, we’re not seeing the same positive consumer momentum we saw a couple of years ago,” he added.

See Chart…

Carlsberg share price.

Bank of America sees good news in the week ahead for equities, with risk skewed to the upside.

“Our economists see no sign of stagflation and expect a continued manufacturing recovery and strong job growth, which should be positive for stocks,” wrote strategist Ohsung Kwon in a note from Monday.

Kwon elaborated that this week’s manufacturing report should indicate that the manufacturing recession has ended. Additionally, Friday’s April jobs report is also likely to indicate strength and “little sign of slowing momentum in the labor market,” the strategist noted.

—Lisa Kailai Han

Balance sheets “look healthy,” cash flow generation is “attractive,” and dividends and buybacks are set to be resilient, Goldman Sachs says.

“Shareholder returns are poised to reach an all-time high,” the bank said in an April 23 note.

But not all stocks offering buybacks and dividends are equal, Goldman said.

It highlighted its baskets of buyback stocks for a diversified strategy. This basket offers a high single-digit yield with roughly 4% via buybacks plus 4% via dividends — with a sector breakdown as close as possible to the market, Goldman said.

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— Weizhen Tan

A Chipolte restaurant stands in Manhattan on February 06, 2024 in New York City. Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) reports Q4 and full-year results late Tuesday.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

Sixteen stocks in the S&P 500 hit new 52-week highs during Monday’s trading session.

Of these names, nine stocks traded at their new all-time highs. These included:

• Chipotle Mexican Grill trading at all-time-high levels back to its initial public offering in January 2006
• Royal Caribbean trading at all-time-high levels back to its IPO in April 1993
• Tractor Supply trading at all-time highs back to its IPO in 1994 after being taken private by an LBO in 1982
• Goldman Sachs trading at all-time-high levels back to its IPO in May 1999
• Carrier Global trading at all-time highs back to its spin-off from United Technologies in March 2020
• Leidos Holdings trading at all-time-high levels back to the SAIC IPO in October 2006
• Trane Technologies trading at all-time-high levels back through Ingersoll Rand’s history, before its recent merger with Gardner Denver
• Veralto trading at all-time highs back to its spin-off from Danaher in October 2023
• Amphenol trading at all-time-high levels since its IPO in 1991

— Lisa Kailai Han, Christopher Hayes

European markets are set to open in mixed territory Tuesday.

The UK’s FTSE 100 index is expected to open 2 points lower at 8,145, Germany’s DAX down 8 points at 18,128, France’s CAC 3 points lower at 8,051 and Italy’s FTSE MIB up 13 points at 34,037, according to data from IG.

Earnings come from AF-KLM, Stellantis, Capgemini, Mercedes, VW, Lufthansa, Santander, Caixabank, OMV, HSBC, Glencore and Whitbread.

Data releases include preliminary euro zone inflation data for April and first-quarter gross domestic product figures for the single currency area.

—Holly Ellyatt