(Alliance News) - Major European markets closed the session in negative territory amid persistent caution linked to geopolitical developments in the Middle East.
The MIB closed lower around the 47,700 level, extending the previous day's corrective move, weighed down by fragile sentiment and reduced risk appetite.
Iran seized two vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, tightening its control over this strategic corridor after US President Donald Trump cancelled strikes, with no signs of a resumption of peace talks.
The semi-official Tasnim agency reported that the Revolutionary Guards seized two boats for maritime violations, escorting them toward the Iranian coast. This marks the first time Iran has seized vessels since the conflict broke out in late February.
On the liquidity front, the Eurotower's weekly balance sheet showed further contraction, with holdings of euro securities held for monetary policy purposes decreasing by EUR28.5 billion to just under EUR3,549 billion, while total assets fell to EUR6,218.3 billion, down EUR28.6 billion on the week.
The MIB, as mentioned, closed down 0.3% at 47,785.46 points, the Mid-Cap fell 0.6% to 58,055.21, the Small-Cap finished in the green by 0.1% at 35,621.96, and Italy Growth closed up 0.8% at 8,841.81.
The CAC 40 closed 1.0% lower, the DAX 40 shed 0.3%, while the FTSE 100 slipped 0.2%.
In Piazza Affari, selling pressure hit Avio, which dropped 5.2%, following a 0.1% decline the previous day, ending the session at EUR34.96.
Moncler closed down 2.7% at EUR56.00 per share. RBC confirmed a "sector perform" rating on the stock with an unchanged price target of EUR59, considering the shares broadly fairly valued at current levels despite an upward revision of estimates following Q1 2026 results. In the report by Piral Dadhania, Nikolaos Lafioniatis, and Richard Chamberlain, analysts highlighted that Moncler posted a solid first quarter, with revenues of EUR881 million, up 12% at constant exchange rates and 5% above expectations. Growth was driven by Asia and the Moncler Grenoble line, while Stone Island confirmed good momentum.
Fincantieri - down 1.6% - announced Wednesday that a contract integration for the PPA (Multipurpose Combat Ship) program was signed, aimed at upgrading PPA class units to the Full Combat System configuration. The agreement was signed by the director of OCCAR-EA and Fulvio Palermo, Head of Project Management at Fincantieri's Naval Vessels Division, representing the temporary joint venture between Fincantieri and Leonardo.
Stellantis shed 1.1% to EUR7.30 per share. JPMorgan maintains an "overweight" rating on the stock with a target price of EUR10.00, compared to a market price of EUR7.39 on April 21, ahead of Q1 results expected on April 30. Analyst Jose M Asumendi noted that the group approaches the earnings release with estimated revenues of EUR37.5 billion and a group margin around 2%, supported primarily by North America, where profitability is seen at 3%.
Eni showed strength, closing higher tracking rising crude prices. The stock ended the session with a bullish candle, up 2.4% at EUR22.94 per share.
Saipem - leading the gainers with a 6.5% rise - announced it has been awarded a new Limited Notice to Proceed, worth approximately USD150 million, by ExxonMobil Guyana Limited for the engineering, procurement, construction, and installation of the subsea system of structures, umbilicals, risers, and flowlines for the Longtail project, located in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana, at a depth of approximately 1,750 meters.
On the mid-cap segment, d'Amico fell 3.8%, marking a bearish candle after three bullish sessions, with a final price of EUR7.48 per share.
Caltagirone gained 5.1%, extending Tuesday's modest 0.2% gain.
Comer Industries finished up 5.6%, rebounding after a minor bearish trend to take the top spot in the segment.
MARR rose 1.8% after two bearish sessions, fixing the price at the bell around EUR8.60.
Acea - up 1.3% - announced on Monday that it had completed, through its subsidiary a.Quantum, the acquisition of Aquanexa from Algebris Investments. As the company noted, the economic value of the transaction in terms of Enterprise Value for 100% of Aquanexa, based on the current perimeter, is approximately EUR205 million.
On the Small-Cap list, Seri Industrial gained over 11% following the previous day's 4.1% contraction, ahead of its quarterly release.
Aedes also performed well, rising 6.6% after a 4.3% loss on Tuesday evening.
Safilo - up 0.3% - announced Tuesday the signing of an exclusivity agreement with Bollé Brands for the acquisition of SPY+ and Serengeti, two US brands active in the outdoor sports and high-end eyewear segments.
The Italian Sea Group, however, slumped over 13% with more than 1.9 million shares traded - the third most active on the list - following a 4.9% loss the previous day, ending at EUR1.72.
Among SMEs, Alfonsino rallied 8.8% to EUR0.18, after a 2.3% drop in the previous session. The stock - on the MarketScreener platform based on a single analyst - is priced with a target of EUR0.47.
Racing Force - up 5.1% - announced Wednesday that Q1 2026 revenues reached EUR24.3 million, up 18% from EUR20.6 million in Q1 2025, with growth at constant exchange rates of approximately 22%. On a broader basis, the quarter's growth brings sales for the last nine months up 20% compared to the same period last year.
Otofarma - up 2.5% - announced Wednesday that it has signed the final purchase agreement for the acquisition of a new production plant in Corsico, in the Milan metropolitan area, completing the closing of the transaction announced in recent months. The total investment of EUR1.5 million will double the company's production capacity, further strengthening Otofarma's position among the main players in hearing aid production in Italy, the company explained in a note.
ErreDue - down 0.2% - announced Wednesday the signing of an order worth approximately EUR900,000 for the supply of a hydrogen production solution using alkaline technology with a total capacity of approximately 0.5 MW, consisting of two modular units of approximately 250 kW. The contract, signed with a leading international industrial group in the production of steel materials for the construction sector, stipulates that the production system will be used in a plant located in Africa, specifically in Uganda.
In New York, the Dow Jones is up 0.7%, the Nasdaq is rising 1.3%, while the S&P 500 is advancing 0.8%.
On the currency front, the euro is trading at USD1.1718 from USD1.1747 on Tuesday evening, while the pound is at USD1.3504 from USD1.3506 yesterday evening.
Among commodities, Brent is trading at USD101.31 per barrel from USD98.16 per barrel on Tuesday evening, while gold is worth USD4,732.59 an ounce from USD4,737.10 an ounce yesterday evening.
On Thursday's economic calendar, Italian car registration data is due at 0600 CEST, while from 0915 CEST - at 15-minute intervals - manufacturing and services PMIs for France, Germany, the Eurozone, and the UK will be released.
At 1430 CEST, US jobless claims are due, while manufacturing and services PMIs are scheduled for publication at 1545 CEST.
In the evening, at 2230 CEST, the Federal Reserve's weekly balance sheet will be published.
By Maurizio Carta, Alliance News reporter
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