Maybank among top gainers, trades ex-dividend

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27) : MALAYAN BANKING BHD [] (Maybank) rose as much as 1% as investors chased the stock to capitalise on its dividends. The stock trades ex-dividend on Friday and the final lodgement date falls on this Wednesday.

Shares of Maybank added nine sen to RM8.61 before trading lower at RM8.60 at 10.52am with some 1.5 million shares changing hands.

Maybank plans to reward shareholders with a final cash dividend of 36 sen a share less 25% tax for the six-months ended December 31, 2011. Note that Maybank had changed its financial year end from June 30 to December 31 in July last year.



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Bumi Armada down 5% on stake sale

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27) : Shares of Bumi Armada Bhd fell as much as 5% on updates that tycoon T. Ananda Krishnan is disposing of US$825 million (RM2.52 billion) worth of shares in the oil and gas support services provider.

The stock declined 23 sen to RM3.99 before trading higher at RM4 at 10.28am with some three million shares done.



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Malaysian stocks weighed down by pre-election sentiment

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27) : Malaysian stocks traded in negative territory on Friday morning as domestic pre-election sentiment gains an upper hand in dictating the direction of the FBM KLCI.

The local market may take the cue from domestic concerns ahead of the coming general election as investors assess the impact of the much-anticipated Bersih 3.0 rally on Saturday. Analysts said while US equities registered a stronger close in overnight trade, Asian stock markets could trade in an opposite direction on Friday.

“This is because sentiment will likely be affected by the negative vibes arising from S&P’s downgrade of Spain’s sovereign credit rating yesterday.

“Reflecting investors’ adverse reaction, the DJIA June futures contract tumbled this morning to hover at a 91-point discount to the spot rate,” HwangDBS Vickers Research Sdn Bhd wrote in a note.

At 9.59am, the FBM KLCI fell 9.28 points to 1,570.41. Across the exchange, some 455 million shares worth RM195 million were traded, leading to 163 gainers versus 208 decliners.

Top gainers NCB HOLDINGS BHD [] was up 45 sen to RM4.35 while PARKSON HOLDINGS BHD [] gained seven sen to RM5.29.

Among decliners, BRITISH AMERICAN TOBACCO (M) [] Bhd lost 76 sen to RM54.74, while Bumi Armada Bhd fell 18 sen to RM4.04.

Among actively-traded stocks, Ariantec Global Bhd gained two sen to RM25.5 sen with some 222 million shares done.

Across Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.15% to 9,575.82, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.08% to 4,378.8, while South Korea’s Kospi was up 0.78% to 1,979.43.



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CIMB Research maintains Outperform on Daibochi, target price RM3.25

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27): CIMB Research has maintained its Outperform rating on Daibochi Plastic & Packaging Industry Bhd with a target price of RM3.25 and said Daibochi’s 1Q12 results were within expectations.

The research house said on Friday that it expects Daibochi to secure maiden major orders from an Australian F&B player sometime this year.

“This could be the much-needed catalyst for the stock. Meanwhile, investors can get 6% return from dividends.

“Even though annualised 1Q12 net profit was 82% of our FY12 forecast, we consider this line with our and market expectations as we expect stronger earnings in the remaining quarters. We maintain our Outperform call and target price basis of 9x CY13 P/E, a 30% discount to our target market P/E,” it said.



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Petra Energy shares up on Perdana Petroleum soliciting bids for stake

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27): PETRA ENERGY BHD [] shares advanced on Friday after Perdana Petroleum Bhd, formerly known as PETRA PERDANA BHD [] said it was soliciting bids for its entire 26.9% stake in Petra Energy.

At 9.38am, Petra Energy rose four sen to RM1.18 with 155,100 shares done.

In a statement to the exchange on Thursday, Perdana Petroluem said it had appointed CIMB Investment Bank Bhd to undertake a restricted tender for its 57.7 million Petra Energy shares.



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Maybank IB Research maintains Buy on MAHB, target price RM7.10

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27): Maybank Investment Bank Bhd Research has maintained its Buy rating on Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd with a target price of RM7.10 and said the company’s 1Q12 core net profit of MYR116.6m (+3.4% YoY, +26.7% QoQ), which was within its expectations, underpinned MAHB's resilience in the face of adversity.

“Despite Malaysian Airlines cutting capacity by over 10% in the quarter, MAHB managed to deliver 6.5% traffic growth YoY which is within its guidance for 6%-7% traffic growth in 2012,” the research house said in a note Friday.

‘We look forward to a promising 2012 as air travel momentum remains healthy in the region and MAHB's high utilization rates will boost profit and profit margin expansion. Maintain Buy, with an unchanged target price of RM7.10/share DCF-based,” it said.



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KLCI edges up in early trade on positive US data, but gains limited

KUALA LUMPUR (April 27): The FBM KLCI edged up in early trade on Friday in line with the overnight gains at Wall Street and higher opening at regional markets.

However gains were limited as the positive US data was overshadowed by after Standard & Poor's downgrade of Spain's rating, as well as investors staying on the sidelines ahead of this weekend’s planned Bersih 3.0 rally.

At 9.00am, the FBM KLCI rose 0.49 of point to 1,580.18, lifted by gains at select blue chips.

Gainers led losers by 26 to 9, while 25 counters traded unchanged. Volume was 4.73 million shares valued at RM7.7 million.

Asian shares inched up on Friday, tracking U.S. stocks which jumped overnight on strong U.S. housing data and earnings, but concerns over the health of European banks weighed on investor risk appetite after Standard & Poor's downgraded Spain's rating, according to Reuters.

Standard & Poor's on Thursday cut its credit rating on Spain to BBB-plus from A , a two-notch downgrade, citing its expectation the government's budget deficit will deteriorate even more than previously thought due to economic contraction.

On Bursa Malaysia, the gainers in early trade included NCB, Aeon, KP Healthcare, Petronas Chemicals, UMW, Genting, Maxis,Sime Darby, Tenaga and RHB Capital.



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Stocks to Watch MAHB, TA Global, Maybank, Aliran Ihsan, MPI

KUALA LUMPUR (April 26): The Malaysian stock market may take the cue from domestic concerns ahead of the coming general election, as investors assess the impact of the much-anticipated Bersih 3.0 rally on Saturday.

Analysts said these local factors could have the upper hand in dictating the direction of the FBM KLCI, despite more optimistic sentiment from the global backdrop.

Trading on the local bourse was volatile on Thursday, as the benchmark erased gains to sink into the red before closing up with a 0.34-point gain to 1,579.69. That could be indicative of trading dynamics on Friday.

Stocks to watch on Friday are Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB), TA Global Bhd, MALAYAN BANKING BHD [] (Maybank), ALIRAN IHSAN RESOURCES BHD [], and MALAYSIAN PACIFIC INDUSTRIES [] Bhd (MPI).

Airport operator MAHB said first quarter (1Q) net profit rose 7% from a year earlier, as revenue growth mitigated the impact of higher operating expenses. MAHB said net profit came to RM102.73 million in the quarter ended March 31, 2012, against RM96.09 million previously. Revenue grew 6% to RM657.71 million from RM617.77 million.

TA Global, a property developer and investor, is acquiring the Movenpick Karon Beach Resort in Thailand from Saudi Arabia-based Kingdom Holding Co for US$90.21 million (RM276.94 million), a move which will see the acquirer making its initial venture into Thailand's hotel industry. TA Global said it is purchasing the entire stake in two wholly-owned units of Kingdom Holding — namely, Kingdom 5-KR-194 Ltd and Kingdom 5-KR-195 Ltd, under which the hospitality assets are held.

Maybank and water-treatment specialist Aliran Ihsan shares will trade ex-dividend on Friday. Maybank plans to reward shareholders with a final cash dividend of 36 sen a share, less 25% tax for the six-months ended Dec 31, 2011. Note that Maybank had changed its financial year end from June 30 to Dec 31 in July last year.

Aliran Ihsan plans to pay a single-tier first interim dividend of 8.5 sen a share for financial year ending Dec 31, 2012.

Semiconductor manufacturer MPI said it posted a net loss of RM7.43 million in the third quarter (3Q) ended March 31, 2012 against a net profit of RM5.05 million a year earlier, as revenue fell 18% to RM275.76 million from RM334.82 million. The company said revenue fell as the group registered lower sales in major markets — including European and Asian countries — apart from the US. MPI said it plans to reward shareholders with a second interim tax-exempt dividend of five sen a share for financial year ending June 30, 2012.



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