Activist Elliott Investment Management has built a more than 10% stake in Norwegian Cruise Line and plans to push for changes to turn the struggling cruise-ship operator around, according to people familiar with the matter. Elliott, now one of Norwegian’s top investors, is planning to engage with the company to try to help fix its underperformance, the people said. Norwegian is the fourth-largest cruise operator in the world by number of passengers, with a market value of roughly $10 billion. Its brands include the more premium Oceania Cruises and the luxury Regent Seven Seas Cruises. Norwegian’s stock is down around 4% year to date as of Friday, after falling roughly 13% in 2025. The Miami-based company has lagged behind competitors including Royal Caribbean and Carnival. Norwegian shares are among the worst-performing in the S&P 500 over the past five years, with the stock remaining near Covid-era levels, despite consumer demand recovering since the pandemic.

The Swiss stock market reached another all-time high on Monday. Switzerland's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the previous quarter. The service sector grew only modestly, while the industrial sector stagnated. For 2025 as a whole, the Swiss economy therefore grew by 1.4 percent, following 1.2 percent in the previous year. The SMI gained 0.4 percent to 13,656 points. Financial stocks were relatively sought after across Europe, with UBS up 0.9 percent and Zurich Insurance up 1.0 percent. The insurance group has been given more time to submit an official offer for the British cyber insurer Beazley. Both companies had agreed to extend the deadline to March 4. Zurich will also publish its business figures this week. Roche (+0.4%) reported positive results from a Phase III study of its blood cancer drug Gazyva/Gazyvaro. Nestlé (+0.7%) climbed ahead of its financial results, which are expected on Thursday. In addition to the figures, investors are looking forward to news about the company's strategy. Swisscom lost 0.3 percent following a negative analyst comment from Bank of America.

Europe
European stock markets ended Monday in mixed territory, with a session marked by a lack of catalysts and the absence of US investors. Wall Street remained closed in honour of the birthday of the first US president, George Washington. At the close, the Stoxx Europe 600 index gained 0.1% to 618.52 points. The CAC 40 gained 0.1% and the SBF 120 rose 0.05%. The DAX 40 ended down 0.5% on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, while the FTSE 100 gained 0.3% in London. ESSILORLUXOTTICA (-4.9%): The lens and eyewear manufacturer, which in October 2025 obtained the necessary authorizations from the Japanese authorities to increase its stake in Nikon to 20%, has just crossed the 15% threshold of the Japanese group's capital. SANOFI (-0.3%): The pharmaceutical group announced on Monday that a study showed that infants vaccinated against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during their first season with its Beyfortus vaccine had fewer hospitalizations for the disease during their second season. VALNEVA (+0.2%): The vaccine manufacturer reported Friday evening that the United Kingdom had restricted the use of its Ixchiq chikungunya vaccine.

United States
On Monday, Wall Street remained closed to mark the birthday of the first president of the United States, George Washington.

Asia
On Tuesday, trading on the stock markets in East Asia and Australia remained largely calm. Many stock exchanges are closed for the Chinese New Year, including those in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Seoul. Furthermore, there is a lack of momentum from the US stock markets, as trading on Wall Street was suspended on Monday due to a public holiday. Sentiment continues to be weighed down by concerns that artificial intelligence (AI) could lead to disruptions and jeopardise the existing business models of many companies. One of the few stock markets that are open is the Tokyo Stock Exchange. There, the Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.8 percent to 56,360 points, weighed down once again by the weak economic growth figures released on Monday. The fact that Goldman Sachs analysts have upgraded Japanese stocks to “overweight” has done little to lift the mood. In Tokyo, technology stocks such as Softbank Group (-5.4%) are being sold off in particular. In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3 percent. Investors welcomed the fact that the Australian central bank signalled a less aggressive interest rate hike course than many market participants had feared, according to the minutes of its latest meeting published on Tuesday, as Adam Boyton of ANZ Bank noted. The Australian benchmark index was supported by shares of mining company BHP, which reported surprisingly strong figures for the first half of the financial year. The share price rose more than 5 percent.

Bonds
On 16 February 2026, the yield on 10-year Swiss government bonds hovered around 0.29%, placing it in historically low territory. The short-term reference interest rate SARON remained slightly negative (around −0.04%), reflecting the overall highly accommodative financing conditions. Internationally, cooler US inflation data caused US yields to fall, boosting demand for government bonds worldwide, including in Switzerland. On February 16, 2026, the exchange rate hovered around EUR 1 = CHF 0.913 and USD 1 = CHF 0.769, signaling that the Swiss franc remains relatively strong.

Analysis
Alcon target price: Research Partners lowers to CHF 80.70 (83) – Buy
Schindler target price: Deutsche Bank reduces to CHF 280 (297) – Hold
Swisscom target price: LBBW raises to CHF 660 (550) – Hold

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