Daily Market Highlights (23.03.11)

  • MSE Share Index drops 0.5% back to the 3,488.576 points on lack of direction in the local equity market. Three of the five largest equities by market cap (BOV, MIA and GO) trade lower. Meanwhile HSBC, Lombard and FIMBank maintain their previous price levels. Meanwhile the Rizzo Farrugia MGS Index marginally recovers from its 21-month low to 976.994 points as the 10-year Eurozone yields eases slightly lower. Download a copy of today’s Equity Market Summary.
  • Renewed selling pressure forces BOV’s share price 1.7% lower back to the €2.90 level. Further bids unsatisfied at the last traded price whilst lowest offers still in the market at the €2.95 level. Next week marks the end of the first six months of the current financial year. The Bank generally publishes the interim report by the end of April.
  • Meanwhile HSBC holds on to the €2.90 level across four trades amounting to 4,628 shares. Best bids now placed at €2.871 whilst lowest offers still placed at the €2.92 level. The Bank is scheduled to hold its Annual General Meeting on 7 April during which shareholders will be asked to approve a number of resolutions including the payment of a final dividend of €0.077 per share.
  • Lombard’s share price holds on to its 52-week high of €3.06 on further support for the equity.  Lombard recovers from an intra-day low of €3.045 to close unchanged at the €3.06 level on high volumes totalling 65,498 shares. Bids of a further 28,500 shares unsatisfied at €3.06 with lowest offers now placed at the €3.08 level. Recently, the Bank published its 2010 financial results revealing a 12.9% increase in profit attributable to shareholders after tax to €8.3 million on the back of improved net interest income and non-interest income. The Directors recommended a final gross dividend of €0.115 per share (+15% over last year) to all shareholders as at the close of trading on 24 March. Further details of results available here.
  • FIMBank also unchanged at the US$0.90 level on volumes of 31,650 shares with no bids in sight whilst lowest offers in the market still placed at the US$0.93 level. On 4 March, FIMBank published its 2010 full-year results showing a significant improvement in profitability from US$2.6 million in 2009 to US$6.7 million in 2010 as the Group cautiously renewed its appetite for business during the year helped by the improvement in emerging market conditions and a steady pick-up in trade flows. The Directors recommended a final net dividend of US$0.0248 per share (2009: US$0.0156) to all shareholders as at closing of trading 25 March. Further details of results available here.
  • On the other hand, GO slipped 0.7% lower to a new 16-month low of €1.65 as investors retreat following the recent announcement of a 50% cut in dividend. A single trade of 2,000 shares transacted today with no bids in sight and lowest offers placed at the €1.659 level. Details on the group’s 2010 results available here.
  • MIA also in negative territory despite recently announcing a 20.9% increase in profitability to €10.69 million. Share price down 1.7% back to the €1.73 on volumes of 2,700 shares. Equity will continue to trade with the entitlement to the final net dividend of €0.035 per share until next Wednesday 30 March. Further details on results available here. Copy of presentation available for download at https://rizzofarrugia.com/security-quotes/equities/c1460e/