Continental, Commerzbank, Infineon, VW: German Equity Preview

By Nadja Brandt and Stefanie Haxel

Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies whose shares may have unusual price changes in Germany. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and share prices are from the previous close.

DAX Index futures expiring today slipped 1.4 percent to 4,691.5 as of 8:20 a.m. in Frankfurt. The benchmark DAX Index climbed 1 percent to 4,756.40 yesterday.

A.S. Creation Tapeten AG (ACW GY): Germany’s biggest wallpaper maker bought majority stakes in two French wholesalers for 15.7 million euros ($22.5 million). The shares fell 75 cents, or 5.3 percent, to 13.50 euros.

Celesio AG (CLS1 GY): HSBC Holdings Plc upgraded Europe’s biggest drug wholesaler to “neutral” from “underweight.” The shares gained 97 cents, or 5.7 percent, to 17.98 euros.

Commerzbank AG (CBK GY): Merrill Lynch & Co. lowered its recommendation for the country’s second-largest bank by assets to ‘underperform” from “neutral.” Commerzbank shares lost 5.5 cents, or 0.9 percent, to 6.03 euros.

Continental AG (CON GY): Europe’s second-largest auto-parts maker had its credit rating lowered by Moody’s Investors Service to below investment grade. The shares increased 4.55 euros, or 13 percent, to 40.39.

Hochtief AG (HOT GY): Merrill Lynch cut its recommendation for Germany’s largest construction company to “neutral” from “buy.” The shares added 1 cent, or less than 0.1 percent, to 32.84 euros.

Infineon Technologies AG (IFX GY): Europe’s second-largest maker of semiconductors can give a maximum loan of 75 million euros to its unit Qimonda AG, Die Welt said, citing an interview with Chief Executive Officer Peter Bauer. The shares were unchanged at 66 cents.

Kloeckner & Co. SE (KCO GY): JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded the steel trader to “neutral” from “overweight.” The shares sank 15 cents, or 1.4 percent, to 10.78 euros.

MorphoSys AG (MOR GY): The biotechnology company that makes antibodies for use in drug development will implement a planned 3-for-1 stock split on Dec. 23 to spur trading of the shares. The shares advanced 47 cents, or 1 percent, to 46.20 euros.

Volkswagen AG (VOW GY): Europe’s largest carmaker’s board is under pressure from some major shareholders to issue new shares, Manager-Magazin reported, adding that the holders are prepared to seek legal damages if a capital increase is not implemented. The shares rose 2.17 euros, or 0.7 percent, to 310.23.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nadja Brandt in Los Angeles at nbrandt@bloomberg.net; Stefanie Haxel in Frankfurt at shaxel@bloomberg.net