European shares get earnings lift, shrug off Greece
* FTSEurofirst 300 up 1.1 pct
* Publicis (Paris: FR0000130577 - news) , Actelion (Xetra: 936767 - news) , Sky (Other OTC: BSYBF - news) , ARM up over 4 pct after results
* Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS - news) shares fall, brokers cite capital concerns
* Greek worries have little impact beyond Athens market
* Additional inflows on horizon from investors -fund mngr
By Lionel Laurent
LONDON, April 21 (Reuters) - A raft of positive company earnings updates pushed European stock markets higher on Tuesday, with investors shrugging off broader market worries about Greece's stalemate with international creditors.
Publicis, Sky, ARM Holdings (LSE: ARM.L - news) were all up more than 4 percent after reporting results, with the overall picture of a weaker euro and improving economic conditions - driven by the European Central Bank's bond-buying stimulus plan - drawing investment flows into equity markets.
European companies are heading for their best earnings season in four years, sharply outperforming their U.S. counterparts on the back of a weak euro and improving economic conditions.
"We will see a further run-up in markets...We are seeing additional inflows from institutional clients," said Ingo Speich, portfolio manager at Union Investment in Frankfurt.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index rose 1.2 percent, near multi-year peaks, with the Frankfurt DAX up 1.4 percent and benchmarks in Paris and London up 0.5 to 0.9 percent.
The Athens ATG index was a notable outlier, down 1 percent, with the Greek banks index down 5.5 percent. Traders cited reports that the European Central Bank was looking into reducing its emergency liquidity assistance for Greek banks.
Credit Suisse also reported a bumper 23 percent rise in first-quarter profit, beating analyst expectations, though the stock fell more than 2 percent. While the stock has gained some 44 percent since mid-January, some brokers raised concerns over the bank's capital strength.
"The issue today will be capital for a bank where concerns linger," said Omar Fall, analyst at Jefferies.
A weak euro helped Publicis report forecast-beating organic sales growth in the first quarter, while Actelion, Europe's biggest biotech firm, raised its full-year guidance after strong sales of its new heart and lung drug helped profits beat expectations.
Associated British Foods (LSE: ABF.L - news) however edged down its full-year earnings guidance on foreign currency concerns and saw its shares fall more than 2 percent.
The German ZEW economic sentiment indicator, keenly watched by investors, is also due later on Tuesday.
"The (ZEW) fell short last month and given the lacklustre performance of the DAX last week the potential for disappointment cannot be ruled out," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson. "A slight improvement is expected ... but this indicator is very fickle."
Europe bourses in 2015: http://link.reuters.com/pap87v
Asset performance in 2015: http://link.reuters.com/gap87v
Today's European research round-up
(Editing by Angus MacSwan)
