European stocks down after Novo's weak forecast, software companies slide (updated)
04/02/2026 09:57
Updates with closing levels GSK shares rise after Miels' first outlook presentation Novo Nordisk shares slump after forecasts disappoint Software shares drop after Anthropic releases AI plug-ins Bank earnings in spotlight By Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur Feb 4 (Reuters) - European shares closed at a record high on Wednesday, though the gains were modest as a telecom sector rally and strength in consumer stocks offset weakness in software companies and a selloff triggered by healthcare company Novo Nordisk's disappointing outlook. The pan-European STOXX 600 .STOXX finished up 0.03% at 618.12 points, building on the previous session's record close as European markets recovered from earlier losses. The telecom sub-index .SX7P climbed 3.6% to an eight-year high. The chemical sub-index .SX4P gained 4.8% and was on track for its biggest daily surge since March 2022. Shares of GSK GSK.L gained 6.9%, hitting a 25-year high after new CEO Luke Miels said the British drugmaker will aim to lift sales growth and speed up work on new medicines in its next phase of growth. "The first set of results under new GSK boss Luke Miels can hardly be said to have made much of a splash, but that may be no bad thing as far as he’s concerned ... the numbers are solid enough even if earnings were a touch off expectations," said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell. The healthcare sub-index .SXDP was lower, though, down 0.3% as Novo Nordisk NOVOb.CO shares weighed. The Danish drugmaker tumbled 17.2%, wiping off around $50 billion from the Wegovy maker's market capitalization after it warned its sales and profits would fall in 2026. Denmark's stock index .OMXC20 slid 6.7%, marking its steepest one-day fall since July 2025. SOFTWARE STOCKS ROUT CONTINUES Investors were also evaluating the potential repercussions of AI developer Anthropic's launch of plug-ins for its Claude Cowork that analysts said could disrupt the software business worldwide. Tech .SX8P and media stocks .SXMP fell 2.5% and 0.7%, respectively, adding to their steep declines on Tuesday. "There is a lot of uncertainty around exactly what AI agents can do, and as such, investors are choosing to shun the software market altogether, leaving nowhere to hide," said Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot. It was also a big day for bank earnings reports across the continent, with the banks' sub-index .SX7E dropping 1.2% UBS UBSG.S reported outflows from its U.S. wealth management business on Wednesday and warned there were more to come after losing some relationship managers. Its shares dropped 6.3% despite beating quarterly profit forecasts. Europe's biggest lender Santander SAN.MC fell 3.5% after the Spanish bank said it would buy U.S. regional lender Webster Financial WBS.N in a $12.2 billion deal. Among other movers, shares in Beazley BEZG.L rose 6.9% to a record high as the British insurer agreed to terms of a sweetened 8-billion-pound ($10.97 billion) takeover proposal from Swiss firm Zurich Insurance ZURN.S. Zurich was also up 3.5%. ($1 = 0.7292 pounds) Novo Nordisk shares have lagged rival Lilly https://tmsnrt.rs/3NMNRAf (Reporting by Avinash P, Johann M Cherian and Ragini Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Shinjini Ganguli, Rod Nickel) ((Avinash.P@thomsonreuters.com;))