BRUSSELS (AFX) - Shares were lower in late morning trade as brewer InBev bucked the trend to rise over 3 pct on stronger-than-expected second quarter results, traders said.
At 11.13 am, the Bel 20 was down 9.63 points or 0.25 pct at 3875.57.
Shares in InBev rose 1.48 eur or 3.64 pct to 42.13 on better-than-expected quarterly numbers and a target price increase to 45 eur from 40 at KBC Securities.
'We welcome the good results and decided to increase our target price to 45 eur from 40,' said KBC Securities analyst Wim Hoste.
He maintained his 'accumulate' rating on the stock.
Delta Lloyd analyst Johan van den Hooven said the results were 'strong,' but pointed out that 'it is getting time that management provides guidance on future growth and particularly on the planned cost savings'.
Earlier, the Belgian group reported a rise in second-quarter net profit to 402 mln eur from 323 mln a year earlier, beating forecasts of 343-362 mln.
Sales climbed to 3.38 bln eur from 2.95 bln and at the top end of 3.29-3.40 bln estimated.
EBITDA was 1.06 bln eur, up 18.7 pct from 821 mln, and above the 933-998 mln forecast. EBIT came in at 817 mln eur, up 23.2 pct from 600 mln and again above the forecast 708-746 mln.
Financial services group Dexia's target price was upped to 22 eur from 21 on valuation grounds.
The stock was unmoved at 19.37 eur.
Yesterday, Dexia completed the capital increase of 1 bln eur to help fund its acquisition of a stake in Turkey's DenizBank SA.
The broker --keeping its 'accumulate' rating -- said in a note to clients: 'We have integrated the capital increase in our valuation models and added the 62.2 million new shares for our per-share calculations.'
On Tuesday, Dexia posted a forecast-beating strong rise in second quarter net profit on higher revenues and said 2006 will be 'another' good year.
In the red, bank KBC lost 0.55 eur or 0.67 to 81.00 and peer Fortis was down 0.31 eur or 1.03 pct at 29.75.
Holding company Nationale a Portefeuille was down 5.60 eur or 1.96 at 280.40.
Shares in telecoms group Belgacom were off 0.20 eur or 0.71 pct at 28.11. The stock was upgraded to 'overweight' from 'underweight' by Lehman Brothers, with a raised target of 32.5 eur from 30.
In a note to clients, the US broker argued that the management's increased focus on cash returns and cautious outlook on M&A enhances its defensive qualities.
It added that while it believes tough regulatory pressure will hold Belgacom's growth profile below that of its peers, competitive forces are more stable than in other markets which improves revenue visibility and earnings stability.
Utility Suez was down 0.15 or 0.45 pct at 33.50 and imaging group Barco lost 0.70 eur or 0.98 pct to 70.90.
Outside the Bel 20, shares in EVS Broadcasting rose 0.50 eur or 1.23 pct to 41.00 after the equipment manufacturer announced that its second-quarter net profit soared to 11.4 mln eur from 1.7 mln as sales almost trebled from a year earlier and new orders surged.
Kristof Samoy of KBC Securities raised his target price to 47 eur from 45 and reiterated a 'Buy' rating, highlighting the company's 'very impressive' record order book of 28.7 mln eur at end-August, compared with his 22 mln estimate.
'Management further upped its guidance and now banks on TV sales growth of in excess of 40 pct,' up from 38 pct previously, the analyst said. He will increase his 2006 TV sales estimate to 80 mln eur from 72 mln, implying year-on-year growth of 54 pct.
Francois Van Leeuw of Degroof also kept a 'Buy' rating but cautioned: 'We look forward to having more detailed information about the 2007 expectations of the company, 2007 being a year without major sport events and without the 5 mln eur rental income of the World Cup.'
EVS said sales rose to 22.4 mln eur in the latest quarter from 8.0 mln last year. frances.robinson@afxnews.com fr/rw COPYRIGHT Copyright AFX News Limited 2005. 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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