MSE Index’s positive rally continues

The MSE Index was on the rise for the third consecutive week having increased by 0.9 per cent, to close at 4,506.009 points. The sovereign bond market also performed positively as a good number of issues recouped some of the recent losses. On the contrary, corporate bond performances were mixed as losers and gainers tallied.

Trading in the equity market was spread across 16 equities of which eleven appreciated in value, two closed in the red while three remained unchanged. Turnover was slightly short of €1.2m.

Bank of Valletta plc(BOV) shares were one of the two listed equities that closed in the red. A total of 28 trades worth over €150,000, resulted in a fall in price of 1.8 per cent. During BOV’s Annual General Meeting held last Friday, all resolutions presented to the shareholders were approved, including  the payment of a  gross dividend of  €0.0852  (net dividend of €0.0554),  and  the bonus  issue  of one share for every thirteen held to be allotted to shareholders on the bank’s share register as at close of business on  January 16, 2017. Mr. Taddeo Scerri will now take over the realms as Chairman from Mr. John Cassar White, while a number of new faces have been appointed to the board of directors following yesterday’s election.

On the contrary, Lombard Bank Malta plc shares emerged as the strongest performers for the week, as 16 trades of 78,906 shares led to an increase of almost 9.5 per cent, to close at €2.30.

In the same sector and also on the positive end of the spectrum, were shares of FIMBank plc andHSBC Bank Malta plc. The former registered a gain of 3.6 per cent across 10 trades of 140,673 shares, to close at $0.875, while the latter traded only once at €1.86 – registering a slight gain of 0.3 per cent over last week’s closing price.

Elsewhere, in the beverage industry, Simonds Farsons Cisk plc shares only traded twice and albeit on low volumes, managed a staggering 7 per cent appreciation to close at €6.90.

Very low volumes were also registered across two trades in International Hotel Investments plc shares. These deals left no mark on its price having closed flat at €0.639. On a separate note, on Wednesday the company announced that the issue of €40 million 4% Unsecured Bonds 2026 was oversubscribed and as a result the intermediaries offer was cancelled.

In its interim directors’ statement last Friday, Plaza Centres plc announced that since the publication of its interim financial statements as at June 30, 2016, apart from the announcement regarding the purchase of Tigne Place in Sliema in September – no material transactions took place. The company also stated that occupancy levels remained high at 99% and are expected to remain the same. Revenue and profit before tax increased as at November 30, 2016, when compared to the same period last year, while costs have increased due to the property acquisition. The directors expect that the financial results for the year will be in line with expectations. Two trades of around €68,000 in total left the price unchanged at €1.10 during Wednesday’s session.

Two deals of a mere 650 shares in total had a positive effect on the share price of Tigne Mall plc, as the value rose from €1.15 to €1.19 – a percentage increase of 3.5.

In the telecommunications industry, GO plc shares traded nine times, for a total of 22,784 shares. This helped the equity to close in the black once again, this time by 0.6 per cent – double last week’s increase. The closing price read €3.249.

Malta International Airport plc shares fully recouped last week’s losses as, 22 deals of over €170,000 in total, incremented the price by 0.3 per cent to €4.05.

Single trades in both Medserv plc and Malita Investments plc had contrasting effects on the respective share prices. 6,000 Medserv plc shares changed hands leading to a 0.5 per cent decline in price, to close at €1.65 per share. On the contrary, the 3,400 Malita Investments plc shares that changed ownership yielded a 1.1 per cent increase in share price, to close at €0.859.

MaltaPost plcshares rebounded from last week’s negative performance as its price increased by 7.7 per cent to a new all-time high of €2.02 as €281k worth of shares was traded across 18 deals.

Meanwhile, MIDI plc sharesexperienced a 1.5 per cent increase from last week’s closing price, to close at €0.335. Three trades tallying to an exact amount of 15,000 shares backed this positive performance.

Unlike last week,RS2 Software plc shares closed in the black at €1.62 resulting in a 3.1 per cent increase in price. A total of 13 trades were registered, for a total of 64,787 shares worth €104,000.

Malta Properties Company plcclosed the week unchanged at €0.60 despite six trades of 10,900 shares executed.

On Wednesday, 6PM Holdings plc announced that Idox plc, a company incorporated under the Laws of the United Kingdom (the offeror), has launched a voluntary public offer to acquire all the share capital currently in issue in the company and held by shareholders at an offer price of £0.88 per share, payable in cash or a combination of cash and shares in the offeror. Hard copies of the offer document will be mailed to shareholders who appear on the company’s register on December 20, 2016. An independent committee established by the Board will be assessing the offer document and prepare a statement of opinion on the effects of implementation of the voluntary bid.

At the end of the week, Santumas Shareholdings plc also made an announcement in which it communicated the directors’ approval of the unaudited interim financial statements for the period ended October 31, 2016. The company reported a profit before tax of €228,669 as compared to €813,302 for the corresponding period in 2015. Total revenue for the period declined from €213,703 to €184,544 while profit per share in 2016 dropped to €0.044 from €0.171.

In the corporate debt market, a total of 34 issues were active of which, gainers and losers tallied at 14 while six closed unchanged. On the other hand, on the sovereign debt front, 16 issues out of the 24 traded ones closed in positive territory and 8 declined. The most liquid issues were the 2.1% Malta Government Stock 2039 and the 2.5% Malta Government Stock 2036 – with over €2.5m traded in each.