PARIS, June 16 (Reuters) - Below are company-related news and stories from French and Benelux media which could have an impact on the region's markets or individual stocks.
French CAC 40 futures down 1.3 pct at 0656 GMT
DARTY DRTY.L
Darty PLC DRTY.L , the target of a recent fierce bidding war, posted on Thursday a 24 percent rise in full year operating profit before exceptionals, as it reaped the fruits of its turnaround strategy. ENERGIE DIREN.PA
London-based investment management firm Ecofin said on Thursday it had sold its entire 4.11 pct stake in French energy provider Direct Energie for about 42.1 million euros ($47 mln). CAR SALES
European car sales jumped the most this year in May, industry data showed on Thursday, helped by an extra selling day in a number of markets, with volume and premium brands alike posting double-digit percentage growth. ASML.AS
Dutch chipmaking equipment firm ASML Holdings NV has agreed to buy Taiwanese peer Hermes Microvision Inc (HMI) 3658.TWO for about T$100 billion ($3.1 billion) to strengthen the pair's technology offering for semiconductor manufacturers. ALUA.PA
Nokia (HE:NOKIA) said on Thursday it expected to cross 95 percent ownership thresholds in Alcatel-Lucent and announced intention to file a public buy-out offer in cash for the remaining Alcatel-Lucent securities followed by a squeeze-out. ELECTRIC SCHN.PA
Aveva Group Plc said on Wednesday talks over a possible tie up with France's Schneider Electric SE had ended, sending the British software maker's shares down as much as 20 percent. TOTF.PA
The Frenh oil company has decided not to sell a 50 percent stake in its Port Arthur, Texas, refinery almost a year after it retained investment bank Lazard to advise on the deal, according to three people familiar with the matter. GROUP AIR.PA
Airbus faces a challenge to meet delivery targets for the A350 jet this year due to problems with suppliers, the president and CEO of Airbus Group's planemaking division told France's La Tribune daily in an interview. ATCA.AS
New York state regulators approved European telecom group Altice's acquisition of Cablevision Systems Corp (NYSE:CVC) CVC.N , a $17.7 billion deal that would create the fourth-largest U.S. cable provider. ZODC.PA
The French aerospace equipment maker was engulfed in fresh takeover speculation after a media reported aircraft engine maker Safran SAF.PA was preparing a bid, though one source denied the report. EDF.PA
Dutch infrastructure fund DIF and French utility EDF have agreed to buy German gas grid Thyssengas from Macquarie for some 700 million euros ($730 million), two people familiar with the matter said.
TRUCK DRIVERS
The European Commission will launch a challenge to a French law requiring foreign truck drivers to be paid the French minimum wage when they make deliveries there, two sources familiar with the matter said. least 36 people were arrested and 16 taken to hospital on Wednesday after French police clashed with England soccer fans in the northern city of Lille, the regional police force said in a statement. L4N19754O
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