Tough time for Swatch as investors take profits

Eurostoxx 50:2,923.76 (–21.86) Frankfurt DAX:7,082.76 (–60.69) Paris CAC:3,976.71 (–35.97)

EUROPEAN STOCKS slid the most since November yesterday after a report said the US building industry started work on fewer homes than projected and Goldman Sachs posted earnings that failed to exceed analysts’ estimates.

Biotechnology company Qiagenlost 2.2 per cent to €14.01. Brokerage Exane downgraded the company to "neutral" from "outperform". It said that Qiagen suffers from a "lack of positive short-term catalysts".

Swatchdropped 4.9 per cent to 373.80 Swiss francs even as the world's largest watchmaker said sales rose 19 per cent in 2010, led by demand for luxury brands in Asia, central Europe and the Middle East.

“The numbers were good this morning,” said Benno Galliker, a trader at Luzerner Kantonalbank in Lucerne, adding that the shares suffered from “some profit-taking” as “some think the numbers were as good as it gets and it will be hard to sustain the growth rate”.

ASMLsank 6.8 per cent to €27.90 as investors speculated that the company's growth will slow in 2011. Europe's biggest semiconductor equipment-maker posted fourth-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates, with 2010 sales rising to a record. "We believe important momentum indicators like bookings, book-to-bill ratio and backlog are set to trend down in coming quarters," Kepler Capital Markets wrote in a note.

Edenredlost 2.1 per cent to €18.25 as Cheuvreux said in a note that the world's largest seller of meal and service vouchers posted "a decent performance, not more".

Eiffagesoared 4.5 per cent to €36.62. France's third largest construction company was named as preferred bidder for a €3.4 billion contract to finance, build and maintain a high-speed railway between Le Mans and Rennes in western France.

Eurotunneladvanced 5 per cent to €7.12 as Exane upgraded the operator to "outperform" from "neutral".

Italy's Banca Popolare di Milanogained 5.2 per cent to €3.05 as Deutsche Bank lifted its recommendation to "buy" from "hold". The brokerage said the stock is "currently undervalued", and the lender's "solvency ratios seem solid enough to avoid a capital increase". – (Bloomberg)