Arcandor, BMW, Continental, Daimler, IKB: German Equity Preview

By Oliver Suess and Stefanie Haxel

Aug. 11 (Bloomberg) -- The following companies may have unusual price changes in Germany. Stock symbols are in parentheses and prices are from the previous close.

DAX Index futures expiring in September gained 0.6 percent to 6,623.5 as of 8:06 a.m. in Frankfurt. The DAX rose 0.3 percent to 6,561.65 on Aug. 8.

Allianz SE (ALV GY): JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its share- price estimate for Europe's largest insurer 9.1 percent to 160 euros, while UBS AG cut its projection 6.1 percent to 155 euros and Morgan Stanley reduced its estimate 2.7 percent to 143 euros. The shares added 44 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 122.47 euros.

Arcandor AG (ARO GY): The company's Karstadt department stores increased sales by 1.5 percent in the third quarter, WirtschaftsWoche reported, citing unidentified people close to the company. Arcandor shares rose 4 cents, or 0.5 percent, to 7.67 euros.

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW GY): BMW and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz unit plan to cooperate on buying components that are ``not brand differentiating,'' Auto Motor und Sport reported, citing unidentified people close to the carmakers.

Separately, Merrill Lynch & Co. cut its share-price estimate for BMW 20 percent to 40 euros. The stock climbed 1.81 euros, or 6.5 percent, to 29.43.

Continental AG (CON GY): Europe's second-largest car-parts maker is in talks with ``several'' rivals about a multibillion- euro transaction to head off a hostile bid for Continental by Schaeffler, the Financial Times reported, citing people close to the situation. The shares advanced 29 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 72.74 euros.

Daimler AG (DAI GY): Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the world's biggest sovereign wealth fund, is interested in buying a ``larger stake'' in Daimler, Focus magazine reported, citing unidentified people close to the automaker. The shares added 1.56 euros, or 3.9 percent, to 41.77.

HCI Capital AG (HXCI GY): The German fund manager cut its 2008 earnings forecast after writedowns on investments in a fund holding U.S. commercial real-estate loans led to a second-half loss. The shares declined 6 cents, or 0.8 percent, to 7.50 euros.

IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG (IKB GY): KfW Group, the German state-owned development bank, said it committed to a capital increase at IKB that was announced last month. IKB shares rose 1 cent, or 0.4 percent, to 2.28 euros.

K+S AG (SDF GY): Europe's largest producer of potash used in fertilizers may raise its full-year profit forecast as prices for the commodity could increase to $1,000 a ton by the end of the year, WirtschaftsWoche said, citing Chief Executive Officer Norbert Steiner. The shares gained 27 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 72.71 euros.

Paion AG (PA8 GY): The biotechnology company working with H. Lundbeck A/S said its first-half loss narrowed because of lower research costs. Paion shares rallied 6 cents, or 5.1 percent, to 1.24 euros.

Pfleiderer AG (PFD4 GY): The supplier of paneling for buildings reported second-quarter profit plunged 65 percent to 5.4 million euros ($8.1 million) on costs related to the closure a Canadian plant and lowered its full-year earnings forecasts. The shares climbed 20 cents, or 2.2 percent, to 9.34 euros.

PrimaCom AG (PRC GY): The German cable operator agreed to sell its cable network businesses in the cities of Wiesbaden and Aachen to Unitymedia GmbH for about 49 million euros. The shares fell 1 cent, or 0.1 percent, to 8.75 euros.

QSC AG (QSC GY): The phone and Internet-service provider said it will return to profitability in the second half after it reported a loss for the second quarter. The shares slipped 3 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 2.17 euros.

Surteco SE (SUR GY): The supplier of coatings for furniture, said first-half profit increased 2 percent as sales rose outside its home market. The shares added 30 cents, or 1.3 percent, to 23.30 euros.

Volkswagen AG (VOW GY): The biggest overseas carmaker in China reiterated it expects to sell 1 million vehicles in the country this year, even after growth slowed last month. The shares advanced 3.84 euros, or 2 percent, to 200.54.

To contact the reporter on this story: Oliver Suess in Munich at osuess@bloomberg.net; Stefanie Haxel in Frankfurt at shaxel@bloomberg.net