Stockholm Stock Exchange Update: Sandvik Leads OMXS30 Higher Amidst Merger Speculation

At around 9:20 am, the OMXS30 index had gained 0.1 percent to reach 2,536. Stocks worth approximately 1.5 billion SEK had been traded on the Stockholm Stock Exchange as a whole.

In Frankfurt, the DAX index was down 0.1 percent while the CAC 40 index in Paris was trading around the flatline.

Back home, the large cap index OMXS30 was led by Sandvik, which surged by 2.3 percent. Sources tell Dagens industri that strong forces are pushing for a merger between Sandvik’s mining equipment business and the Finnish stock market giant Metso.

Within the large cap index, Nibe added 1.9 percent. ABG Sundal Collier has raised its recommendation for Nibe to hold from sell this morning.

The biggest early loser was Saab, which fell by 4.5 percent along with several other European defense companies. This comes in the wake of reports over the weekend that Germany will not approve any new aid packages for Ukraine.

Astra Zeneca also saw a decline of 0.8 percent.

On the analyst front, Pareto Securities has initiated coverage of the software company Vitec with a buy recommendation. The stock rose by 1.3 percent.

SEB, on the other hand, has lowered its recommendation for the serial acquirer Karnell to hold from buy. Karnell dropped by 3.7 percent.

Biotage has been labeled a buy by Dagens industri under the “Stock of the Week” section. Despite the health company’s strong performance on the stock market, there is more upside potential as the company grows, it says. The stock rose by 4.2 percent.

Börsveckan recommends buying Bulten, Qleanair, Norva24, Doro, Embellence, Careium, and Bredband2.

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