Daily Market Highlights (03.11.2014)

  • The MSE Share Index edged marginally lower to 3,303.230 points as the 3.4% decline in the share price of GO offset the milder gains in the equities of the two large banks.Plaza Centres also traded in negative territory, while three other equities, namely IHI, Santumas Shareholdings and FIMBank closed unchanged. Download a copy of today’s Equity Market Summary.
  • On the bond market, the Rizzo Farrugia MGS Index edged up to yet another all-time high of 1,093.956 points as eurozone yields fell towards the 0.81% level. However, by this afternoon, yields recovered towards 0.84%. The Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) move to lift growth raised expectations that the European Central Bank would follow the footsteps of the BOJ and announce measures on Thursday that are intended to stimulate growth in the Eurozone region.
  • Bank of Valletta  closed 0.9% at the €2.25 level after failing to hold on to an intra-day high of €2.27. Activity increased to 77,695 shares as the market reacted to the publication of the annual financial statements last Friday afternoon. BOV reported a 10% decline in pre-tax profits to €104 million during the financial year ended 30 September 2014. The Directors recommended the payment of a final gross dividend of €0.0925 per share (final net dividend of €0.0601 per share), representing a decline of 21% compared to the final dividend of last year. This year’s final dividend is payable to those shareholders as at close of trading on Thursday 13 November. Moreover, a bonus share issue of 1 new share for every 11 shares held will be allotted to shareholders as at close of trading on 14 January 2015.
  • High volumes were also transacted in HSBC Bank Malta  with a total of 93,778 shares changing hands. The equity edged 0.3% higher to the €1.975 level.
  • On the other hand, the share price of GO  declined by 3.4% and closed this morning’s session at the €2.55 level across shallow volumes of 1,951 shares. Similarly, Plaza Centres plc slipped by 1.6% to end today’s trading at €0.60 on strong volumes totalling 526,969 shares.
  • Three other equities traded unchanged. International Hotel Investments  closed at the €0.54 level after touching a fresh intra-day record low of €0.535. Earlier this morning IHI published its Interim Directors’ Statement providing an overview of the performance of the Group during the nine months ended September 2014. While the Corinthia hotels in Malta, Lisbon, Budapest and London have experienced better results than the comparative 2013 period, the hotels in Tripoli and St Petersburg have been largely affected by the geopolitical unrest in the respective areas.
  • FIMBank  held on to the USD0.63 level across two deals amounting to 18,569 shares and Santumas Shareholdings  maintained the €2.00 level on a single deal of a mere 24 shares. This was the first time that the equity traded since it changed its listing status from a collective investment scheme to a property holding company earlier on last month.