Written by Joseph Chin
Friday, 25 June 2010 07:03
KUALA LUMPUR: The weaker overnight close on Wall Street due to the uncertain economic prospects is expected to see investors retreating to the sidelines and taking profit on Friday, June 25.
In New York, the broader S&P 500 fell for the fourth straight day on Thursday, as fresh signs of consumer weakness and worries about stringent financial regulation provoked investors to unload positions.
The S&P 500 has lost 3.8% in four days. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 145.64 points, or 1.41%, to 10,152.80. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 18.35 points, or 1.68%, to 1,073.70. The Nasdaq Composite Index lost 36.81 points, or 1.63 percent, to 2,217.42.
At Bursa Malaysia, stocks to watch include EON CAPITAL BHD [], SAPURACREST PETROLEUM BHD [], GAMUDA BHD [], SEG INTERNATIONAL BHD [], BERJAYA LAND BHD [] and TOP GLOVE CORPORATION BHD [].
The Edge FinancialDaily reports on Friday that an independent financial adviser appointed by the board of EON Capital Bhd (EONCap) recommended a "fair and reasonable" takeover offer price of RM6.18 billion, or RM8.91 per share.
This based on details in a law suit filed by Primus (M) Sdn Bhd on Monday.
SapuraCrest Petroleum's net profit for the first quarter ended April 30, 2010 (1QFY11) almost doubled to RM50.69 million from RM25.66 million a year ago, mainly due to higher contribution from activities in the installation of pipeline and facilities and the drilling division.
Revenue dropped 6.4% to RM670.35 million from RM716.18 million previously as a result of lower activities in the drilling and marine services divisions.
Earnings per share for 1QFY11 stood at 3.97 sen versus 2.03 sen in the same quarter last year.
Gamuda posted a net profit of RM73 million or 3.62 sen per share in the third quarter ended April 30, 2010 (Q3FY10), 57.7% higher than RM46.3 million in the corresponding period last year.
The higher earning was due to better contributions from all business divisions. Revenue, however, dropped 11.8% to RM511.2 million from RM579.4 million. Gamuda declared a second interim dividend of six sen per share less 25% tax payable on Aug 18.
For the nine-month period, net profit jumped 35% to RM204 million, or 10.12 sen per share, versus RM150.4 million previously while revenue came in at RM1.74 billion, down a marginal 2% from RM1.78 billion in 2009.
SEG International's share price surged to a 5 1/2 year high of RM4.75 prompting a query from Bursa Malaysia Securities Bhd over the share price movement.
It opened at RM4.49 and ended the day at RM4.59, up 10 sen on some profit taking after the recent price surge.
Bursa Securities had queried the company over the sharp rise in price in the shares recently. On Wednesday, the share price surged 42 sen to RM4.49.
Berjaya Land's share price surged to a two-year high of RM4.45 yesterday after it reported a strong set of earnings and announced a corporate exercise.
It rose 38 sen to RM4.45 with 684,100 shares done. The share price was the highest since Aug 6, 2008.
Top Glove, the world’s largest rubber glove manufacturer, foresees its net profit for the financial year ending Aug 31, 2010 (FY2010) growing 70% to 80% from FY2009, said its chairman, Tan Sri Lim Wee-Chai.