The logo of Puma SE displayed in the window of the flagship store in Berlin, Germany, on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. Puma forecast slower profit growth as new Chief Executive Officer Arne Freundt confronts excess inventory and higher costs for marketing sneakers and apparel. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images
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LONDON — European stocks were mixed in morning trade on Thursday, as corporate earnings took the spotlight.
By 9:20 a.m. in London (4:20 a.m. ET), the pan-European Stoxx 600 was hovering just above the flatline, with sectors and major bourses in mixed territory.
It’s a busy day for earnings in Europe with Deutsche Telekom, Schneider Electric, Allianz, AXA, Munich Re, Engie, Eni, Saint-Gobain, London Stock Exchange Group, Stellantis and Covestro among the firms reporting on Thursday.
German sportswear giant Puma published its full-year earnings for 2025 on Thursday morning, reporting an 13.1% decline that it attributed to its strategy “reset,” which was completed last year. Shares were last seen trading almost 6% higher.
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The firm reported an operating loss of 357.2 million euros ($421.8 million), down from an operating profit of 548.7 million the previous year. The loss was narrower than the 374.3 million euro loss anticipated in an analyst consensus provided by Puma.
Puma said sales declined notably in the second half of the year, while its profit margin fell by 260 basis points to 45%. It proposed canceling dividend payouts for 2025, and said it expected to report an operating loss of between 50 million and 150 million euros this year.
In a Thursday note, analysts at Jefferies said the earnings report showed Puma had made progress “slightly ahead of the journey mapped out in the closing stages of 2025” with “no major surprises from a tough end to 2025.”
“The group had already outlined 2026 as a transition year and guidance today feels consistent,” they said.
Meanwhile, Britain’s Rolls-Royce said Thursday it expects profits of over £4 billion ($5.42 billion) in 2026, as it reported a larger-than-expected profit jump of 40% for 2025. London-listed shares of the company were last seen 5.7% higher.
LSEG was up 4.8% in morning trade as it unveiled plans for a £3 billion share buyback. The financial markets data and infrastructure provider’s annual pre-tax profits reached £1.97 billion, up 56% on the previous year.
Elsewhere in corporate earnings, Allianz achieved its biggest ever full-year operating profit, at 17.4 billion euros, a year-on-year rise of 8.4%. Shares in the German multinational insurance and financial services giant were last seen 1.3% lower. AXA meanwhile was 0.2% lower after the French multinational insurer’s underlying earnings came in at 8.4 billion euros for the year, up 6% year-on-year.
The more negative start to the trading session expected in Europe today comes after generally positive sentiment this week, despite uncertainty over global trade after President Donald Trump’s tariff announcements last weekend.
Still, markets have been relieved that a universal 10% tariff came into effect rather than the threatened higher 15% rate, and attention has turned to earnings reports.
U.S. stock futures fell Wednesday night as investors digested the latest earnings update from Nvidia, with the chip giant posting a fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beat Wednesday.
Asia-Pacific markets rose overnight, tracking Wall Street gains as strong earnings lifted investor sentiment.
