FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - Shares in Vitesco came under selling pressure on Friday after the announcement of a quarterly loss. After a peak loss of 6.8 percent, the downward pressure on the shares of the automotive supplier recently relativized somewhat to 3.9 percent. However, at 62.10 euros, the share price fell below the 21-, 50- and 100-day trend lines, which are considered short- to medium-term trend indicators.

Vitesco slipped into the red at the start of the year due to high costs for company restructuring and restocking. While sales rose by around two and a half percent in the first quarter, operating earnings (Ebit) fell to minus 25.3 million euros. The results were probably not enough to give the stock a positive boost, a trader said in the morning. This could tempt investors to cash in.

Analyst Himanshu Agarwal of Jefferies Research noted a weak first quarter and criticized above all the disappointing cash flow. In contrast, his colleague Philipp Konig from Goldman Sachs assessed the figures as slightly positive overall. He expects the good order intake in the electrification segment to increase in the coming quarters. In his view, profitability is in line with expectations.

So far this year, Vitesco shares are still up around 14 percent on Friday, putting them roughly in the middle of the SDax. Near the 70-euro mark, the share had reached a record high in the spring, which it had approached again somewhat in the past five trading days. Large parts of these recent price gains have now disappeared again./edh/tih/mis