FRANKFURT (AFX) - German shares were largely flat in late afternoon trade as Wall Street indices were mixed and gains by Adidas and Fresnius Medical Care were kept in check as Deutsche Post posted a loss of more than 4 pct, dealers said.
At 4.22 pm, the DAX was 1.20 points, or 0.02 pct, higher at 6,672.61 after trading between 6,633.81 and 6,685.45.
The MDAX was 32.74 points, or 0.33 pct, to 9,848.94, while the TecDAX added 1.40 points, or 0.17 pct, to 823.91.
DAX futures lost 23.50 points, or 0.36 pct, to 6,548.00 and bund futures gained 0.15 point, or 0.13 pct, to 116.28.
The euro traded at 1.3291 usd from 1.3287 in late midday trade.
'Losses from Deutsche Post are pulling the market down slightly, while moderate gains from Adidas and Fresenius shares have not been able to lift the DAX,' said a Frankfurt-based trader.
Aside from trade in these three companies, the market has been relatively quiet as investors are braced for a decision from the US Fed over interest rates on Wednesday.
Leading advancers, Fresenius Medical Care added 2.46 eur or 2.31 pct at 108.98.
FMC's shares were upgraded to 'buy' from 'neutral' and its price target set at 114 eur per share by Sal Oppenheim on valuation grounds, dealers said.
The broker said FMC stands to benefit from its vertical integration structure, possible changes in US Medicare legislation and from continued strong product growth.
Adidas gained 0.62 eur, or 1.64 pct, at 38.47 as traders talked of renewed speculation US competitor Nike Inc might launch a takeover bid.
An Adidas spokeswoman declined to comment, saying the company does not comment on market speculation as a matter of principle.
Separate sources said that there were rumours of a large-scale purchase of Adidas shares, perhaps through Metro major shareholder, the Haniel family.
MAN shares added 1.32 eur, or 1.57 pct, at 85.48, after it said unit MAN Nutzfahrzeuge AG expects full-year 2007 unit sales and revenues to increase 10 pct compared with 2006.
Volkswagen climbed 1.54 eur, or 1.47 pct, to 106.20, buoyed from two price target upgrades from Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers.
Morgan Stanley, which issued the more bullish of the two notes, said it was lifting its target price by 26 pct to 135 eur per share and maintaining its 'overweight' stance due to valuation grounds following VW''s strong fourth-quarter results.
'We can account for VW's current share price just with our standalone valuation of the Audi AG business plus market values of the Scania and MAN equity stake,' the brokerage said.
On the downward side, Deutsche Post dropped 0.98 eur, or 4.22 pct, at 22.24, leading blue-chip stocks lower after the outlook it gave for 2007 came in lower-than-expected and left analysts talking of the postal carrier's apparently more cautious stance, dealers said.
'The outlook seems quite cautious,' said a broker from a major US brokerage.
'Deutsche Post sees an EBIT of at least 3.6 bln eur in 2007, while most analysts have penciled in around 3.9 bln eur compared with last year's EBIT of of 3.87 bln eur,' he said.
SAP slipped 0.40 eur, or 1.18 pct, at 33.58, ahead of the release of full-year figures from US competitor Oracle. Traders say speculation that Oracle might issue a profit warning are putting pressure on SAP's shares.
Infineon, lost 0.10 eur, or 0.88 pct, at 11.27. A broker note from Deutsche Bank said it expects global semiconductor sales to drop by 1.4 pct in 2007 compared to the previous year. Market analysts had previously been expecting a rise of 3.6 pct.
Munich Re, lost 0.24 eur, or 0.21 pct, at 115.10. The world's second-largest re-insurer by revenues said in its annual report that its US unit Munich Reinsurance America posted a 2006 full-year net loss of 1.035 bln usd due to high asbestos claims and a negative tax effect.
The unit, which was called American Re when the German re-insurer acquired it in 1996, has had to be refinanced on several occasions.
In 2005, Munich Re America posted a full-year net loss of 1.526 bln usd.
Peer Allianz was down 0.10 eur, or 0.07 pct, at 151.40.
'Our revised VW sum-of-parts model (also based conservative assumptions) comes to 181 eur per share, almost 75 pct above the current share price.'
Fresenius, parent company of DAX listed FMC, rose 1.32 eur, or 2.35 pct, at 57.59, leading a largely flat MDAX.
At the other end of the MDAX, Suedzuecker fell 1.37 eur, or 9.23 pct, at 13.47 after the sugar giant slashed its 2006/07 net profit forecast after suffering a 500 mln eur write-down on its French sugar business.
Lanxess dropped 1.04 eur, or 2.71 pct, at 37.32, after the chemicals company announced fourth-quarter figures that came in slightly below expectations but with a moderate 2007 outlook expected to limit losses, dealers said.
A Frankfurt-based dealer said the numbers were slightly negative, but were not a huge surprise.
'I expect the shares to show moderate pricing pressure, but largely on technical grounds and not so much because of the results,' he said.
Another trader said the company's moderate outlook for 2007 -- given after Lanxess said it has started the year very well -- should ease stock price pressure.
On the TecDAX, Solarworld fell the fastest, down 0.73 eur, or 1.23 pct, at 58.47, while Q-Cells added 1.05 eur, or 2.32 pct, to 46.23 at the other end. Tyler.Sitte@afxnews.com ts/vs/ts/slj COPYRIGHT Copyright AFX News Limited 2007. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of AFX News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of AFX News. AFX News and AFX Financial News Logo are registered trademarks of AFX News Limited
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