Daily Market Highlights (19.05.10)

  • MSE Share Index recovers by 0.2% to close at 3,545.184 points as gains in HSBC, MIA, Middlesea and FIMBank offset the declines registered in Lombard, Medserv, Plaza and GlobalCapital. Meanwhile MaltaPost closed unchanged at its 26-month high of €0.90. Download a copy of today’s Equity Market Summary.
  • Subscriptions for the 3 new Malta Government Stocks close this afternoon. The three new stocks are a new 20-year bond with a coupon of 5.25% priced at 99.50%; a fungible issue of the 3.75% MGS 2015 (VI) priced at 102.80%; and a fungible issue of the 4.6% MGS 2020 (II) priced at 102.50%. Copy of Prospectus & Application Forms available here.
  • Simonds Farsons Cisk plc recently announced a new €15 million 6% bond issue maturing between 2017 and 2020. This bond will primarily be used to finance the early redemption of the outstanding €9.3 million 6.6% bonds. The balance of the proceeds will be used for the general funding purposes of the Group including a €14 million investment in a new brewhouse and water treatment plant. Following the completion of this project the Mriehel façade will be released for re-development. The Farsons Group will be giving preferential allocation to existing bondholders who exchange their bonds for the new bonds. Further details and prospectus available here.
  • Eden Finance plc is also issuing a new 10-year bond. Eden will be issuing a €15 million 6.6% Bond maturing between 2017 and 2020. The proceeds will be mainly used to finance the redemption of the outstanding 6.7% Bonds. Existing bondholders will be given preferential allocation if they surrender their existing holding in favour of an equivalent amount of the new Bonds. Further details available here.
  • HSBC continues to recover as the share price edges a further 0.3% higher to close at the €3.08 level. 3,200 shares changed hands today with further offers remaining unsatisfied at the closing price.
  • Middlesea Insurance also on the rise for the third successive session as investors reacted positively to Monday’s Interim Directors’ Statement. The announcement revealed that the Middlesea Group registered a profit before tax of €2.8 million during the first three months of 2010 (Q1 2009: loss of €5.3 million). This substantial improvement over last year’s loss is due to the satisfactory performance by its local operations and the closure of its loss-making Italian subsidiary, Progress Assicurazioni. Equity jumped a further 4.8% today to regain the €0.891 level on volumes of 10,000 shares. Other bids unsatisfied at the closing price whilst lowest offers now pitched at the €0.898 level.
  • MIA recovered most of yesterday’s declines as it climbed 1.3% to close at the €3.14 level. Low volumes of 2,110 shares exchanged today. Today’s upturn is possibly a reaction to Ryanair’s inauguration of its Malta base from where it will service an additional 6 routes.
  • FIMBank also in positive territory as the share price adds 0.9% to close at US$1.09 on six trades amounting to over 21,000 shares. Best bids still in the market at US$1.08 whilst lowest offers now pitched at the US$1.095 level.
  • Meanwhile Medserv slips 0.7% lower to close at the €4.25 level on a single trade of 5,000 shares. Last Monday Medserv published its Interim Directors’ Statement revealing that during the first quarter of 2010 the Group registered a slight decline in operations when compared to the same period last year as newly contracted exploratory engagements were delayed. Further details on Interim Directors’ Statement available here.
  • GlobalCapital shaved 5.5% off its share price to close at the €1.50 level over 2,000 shares. No bids in sight with further offers remaining unsatisfied at the closing price. During the pas two sessions equity has dropped by 11.8%.
  • Lombard and Plaza also trade lower. Lombard Bank slumped 1.7% to a new 2010 low of €2.85 on volumes of 4,160 shares. Plaza’s share price eased 0.6% to close at the €1.63 level on a single trade of 10,000 shares.
  • A further 25,745 MaltaPost shares trade at their 26-month high of €0.90. Best bids now in the market at €0.80 level whilst further offers remain unsatisfied at the last traded price. The half-year results published last Thursday show a marginal increase in revenue profit to €1.18 million (March 2009: €1.14 million). Further details on results available here.