MSE Index turns positive year-to-date as large caps soar

MSE Trading Report for week ending June 08, 2018

The local equity market turned positive by just under one per cent year-to-date, as it logged a strong performance during the four-day week. The MSE Equity Total Return Index soared an impressive 2.2%, with the bulk of the gains registered on Monday. Two of the main drivers of this rally were HSBC Bank Malta plc and International Hotel Investments plc. Overall, nine equities headed north and six lost ground, while the other seven active equities closed unchanged. Investor participation was slightly higher this week as a turnover of €1.4 million was generated over 205 deals.

 

In the banking industry, HSBC Bank Malta plc completelyoverturned two weeks’ losses as it reached a two-month high of €1.84 on Tuesday before slightly retracting to €1.83, equivalent to an overall 8.28% price hike. The equity also generated the largest turnover of the week, as 179,306 shares were exchanged over 33 transactions.

 

Its peer, Bank of Valletta plc registered a modest gain of 0.57% as it closed at a one-month high of €1.76. A total of 157,586 shares traded over 49 deals.

 

FIMBank plcexperienced a positive week as two transactions of 3,186 shares were executed at $0.545, pushing the share price up by 4.81%.

 

In the same sector, Lombard Bank Malta plc closed unchanged at €2.30 despite a turnover of €21,768.

 

Similarly, telecommunications company GO plc recovered from a mid-week dip, to close unchanged at €3.40. The equity traded 14 times as 32,189 shares changed ownership.

 

International Hotel Investments plcheld its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, during which all resolutions on the agenda were approved. The company also announced that a net dividend of €0.02 per share will be paid on July 16 to all registered shareholders as at June 30, 2018.

 

In the days leading to the AGM and in its aftermath, the equity posted gains for three straight days to reach a two-year high of €0.70. The equity ultimately closed the week 10.32% higher at €0.695. Trading activity was high, as 233,427 shares changed hands over 27 deals.

 

On Wednesday, Malta International Airport plc published its monthly traffic results for May, showing that the company continued on the positive trend set out in the earlier months of 2018. The passenger traffic figure stood at 643,089 passengers during May, translating to a 17.3% upsurge over the same month last year. This growth in passenger numbers was driven by a 16.6% increase in aircraft movements and a 17% increase in seat capacity, while seat load factor was marginally up to 80.6%, registering an increase of 0.1 percentage points. The top contributors for the month were the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France and Spain.

 

The equity advanced one per cent to a high of €5.05, possibly as a reaction to the announcement. Traded volume totalled 34,154 shares over 18 trades.

 

The positive price movement registered by MaltaPost plc last week proved unsustainable as it retracted 2.78% to the €1.75 price level this week. A couple of transactions of a combined 3,200 shares were recorded.

 

Insurance company Mapfre Middlesea plc was the worst performer this week, as it sank 6.86% to €1.90. A relatively slim volume of 4,004 shares traded over three transactions.

 

In the same sector, a single deal of just 250 GlobalCapital plc shares had no effect whatsoever on the share price of €0.34.

 

On Tuesday, RS2 Software plc issued an interim directors’ statement providing the market with some updates on recent developments. The group has successfully formed a strategic alliance and a processing services agreement with a large player in the travel and tourism industry, to deliver global acquiring services to international airlines, travel agents, hotels and car rentals in various regions.

 

The group also signed a three-year processing agreement with Finanfarma in Portugal and another agreement with a European partner to offer non-EU processing and global acquiring services.

 

Furthermore, the Group is in final stages of concluding a managed services agreement with a major player in the ASEAN region considered as a leading payment service provider operating across various countries in Asia Pacific. The Group is also concluding another processing agreement with a US payment services provider to process their business in the European market.

 

In spite of this announcement, the equity dropped 2.56% to €1.14 across 12 trades of a combined 70,930 shares.

 

In the food and beverages sector,Simonds Farsons Cisk plc fullyrecovered two weeks’ losses, climbing 3.08% to recapture the €6.70 price level. A total of 555 shares were exchanged over just two trades.

 

A couple of transactions of 3,107 Grand Harbour Marina plc shares had a positive impact on the price of the equity, as it ascended 5.33% to close at €0.79.

 

Retail conglomerate, PG plc put on a modest gain of 0.78%, as six deals of 54,000 shares pushed the price up to €1.29.

 

In the oil sector, Medserv plc registered contrasting performances during the week which ultimately balanced each other out. As a result, the equity closed at last week’s closing price of €1.05 despite a turnover of €23,739.

 

Loqus Holdings plc traded flat at last week’s established price of €0.10 over a couple of trades on slim volume.

 

In the property sector, Tigne Mall plc fully erased the previous week’s gain as it slumped 5% to €0.95. The equity traded seven times as 80,369 shares changed hands.

 

On Monday, Trident Estates plc announced that the Annual General Meeting will be held on June 27, 2018 to approve the financial statements for the year ended January 31, 2018, re-appoint the auditors and approve directors’ aggregate amount of emoluments payable annually. A total of 19,392 shares were exchanged over three deals, however the equity closed unchanged at €1.30.

 

Similarly, Malta Properties Company plc bounced back from a loss recorded early during the week, to close unchanged at €0.55, despite a trading volume of 9,004 shares.

 

On Friday, MIDI Investments plc announced that it shall hold its Annual General Meeting on June 27, 2018, to approve the financial statements for 2017, together with a final net dividend of €0.007 per share, the re-appoint of the auditors and the maximum annual aggregate remuneration for all directors. The share price was down by 3.67% to €0.42, the outcome of three transactions of a combined 18,198 shares.

 

Its peer Malita Investments plc climbed 1.19% to €0.85 as a result of three transactions worth €10,988.

 

Main Street Complex plcmoved in the opposite direction by 1.45% to €0.68on its second week of trading. In total, four deals were executed, in which 27,000 shares changed hands.

 

Performances in the local sovereign debt market were mixed as most securities with maturities longer than 10 years registered gains, while the shorter-term instruments generally declined. Ultimately, gainers amounted to 12 while fallers totalled nine issues, as a total turnover of €1.7 million was generated.

 

The top performer was the 4.65% MGS 2032 (I) which appreciated by 0.45% to €137.08.

 

This issue was closely followed in the list of gainers by the 2.4% MGS 2041 (I) which bounced back from last week’s performance with a 0.43% gain in price to €105.62.

 

On the other hand, the worst performer was the 3.3% MGS 2024 (I) which drifted 0.98% lower to close at €115.85.

 

On the corporate debt front, out of the 33 active issues, 13 headed south while 10 gained ground as in total, €2.3 million worth of securities traded.

 

The 3.75% Bortex Group Finance plc Unsecured € 2027 recovered all of the previous week’s loss as it was up 2.36% to €103.95.

 

Similarly, 4.8% Bank of Valletta Plc Sub € 2020 extended last week’s gain having climbed a further 2.27% to €103.80.

 

On a negative note, the 4% MIDI plc Secured € 2026 lost 0.81%, closing at €103.75.