KUALA LUMPUR: After the extended selling pressure by foreign funds, which has spread to fundamentally strong companies, local investors are not ready for any bottom fishing as yet on Wednesday, Sept 21.
The FBM KLCI fell to a fresh 13-month low on Tuesday, Sept 20, closing at 1,410.64 while the broader market saw declining stocks beating advancers two to one.
Among the major decliners were Petronas Chemicals Bhd, which lost 27 sen to RM5.78 which saw 35.41 million shares transacted. Dialog Group lost 17 sen to RM2.18 and MRCB seven sen to RM1.79 in very active trade. Even PUBLIC BANK BHD [] closed lower, down 20 sen to RM12.60.
On the international front, investors are waited to see if the Federal Reserve's policy-setting panel offers aid to a sputtering US economy, according to Reuters.
“At the two-day meeting that starts Tuesday, the Fed is expected to try to push already low long-term interest rates even lower by tilting toward longer-duration bonds in its portfolio, a move known as Operation Twist,” it said.
At Bursa Malaysia, stocks to watch include AIRASIA BHD [], MISC BHD [], ALAM MARITIM RESOURCES BHD [], KESM INDUSTRIES BHD [] and HO WAH GENTING BHD [] [] (HWGB).
However, PLANTATION []s could be given a boost following the firm crude palm oil prices. The CPO for third-month delivery rose RM26 to RM3,067 per tonne.
AirAsia Bhd said its Thai unit's initial public offering is on track to take place in the fourth quarter, according to a Reuters report.
"AirAsia Group would like to state and confirm that the newsflow is incorrect and that the IPO is still scheduled for 4Q11 listing," a spokesperson for the airline said in a statement on Tuesday
A local newspaper had earlier said CIMB Securities (Thailand), which is advising on the US$200 million IPO, had reported the listing was delayed as the airline needed more time to restructure and conduct due diligence.
This saw AirAsia’s share price falling to 16 sen to RM3.19. CIMB Equities Research cut its target price for the low-cost carrier from RM4.32 to RM3.98 as it implied lower price-to-earnings multiples of 12 times from 13 times to its FY12 earnings per share.
Meanwhile, Moody's Investors Service downgraded the issuer and senior unsecured ratings of MISC Bhd from A3 to Baa1. The outlook of the ratings is negative.
“The prolonged weakness in MISC's credit metrics, operating losses in its liner, chemical and petroleum segments, and large capital expenditure plans -- amidst a difficult operating environment – had triggered the review,” it said.
The international ratings agency pointed out that MISC's adjusted debt/earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of 6.0 times and EBIT/interest of 1.6 times for FY ended March 31, 2011 remain stretched for its current standalone rating.
Moody’s also said MISC was also projected to incur US$1.8 billion of capex -- from FY2011 to FY2012 -- for new vessel deliveries, offshore and heavy engineering projects. In addition, its liquidity profile has weakened, with maturing debt of RM1.58 billion requiring refinancing as at June 30, 2011.
On a positive note, Alam Maritim Resources Bhd’s unit has secured a RM22.10 million contract to supply a vessel to a local oil and gas company. The contract was for 28 months and it started on July 24.
KESM Industries Bhd’s earnings fell 50.8% to RM2.14 million in the fourth quarter ended July 31, 2011 from RM4.36 million a year ago which was due to lower sales margins but for the financial year, it managed to record double-digit increases in pre-tax profit and revenue.
Revenue slipped 5.6% to RM61.35 million from RM65.05 million while earnings per share (EPS) were 5.0 sen versus 10.10 sen. It proposed a dividend of three sen a share.
For the financial year ended July 31, 2011, its net profit increased 5% to RM12.38 million from RM11.74 million while revenue rose 10% to RM248.11 million from RM226.46 million. It recorded pre-tax profit of RM22.71 million, an increase of 17% compared with RM19.40 million. KESM said operating expenses fell 9% to RM223.95 million from RM207.11 million.
HWGB’s rights shares with new warrants were undersubscribed by 79.54% at the close of the acceptance and payment of the rights issue on Sept 13. The corporate exercise involved the issuance of 115.81 million rights shares together with 57.91 million new warrants available.
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