The Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) index managed to maintain its momentum with a 0.6 per cent gain, thus marking a fresh two-year high to close the week at 3,411.427 points. Momemtum was strong throughout the week as the index gathered a 1.1 per cent gain over four sessions, while on Thursday it succumbed to a 0.5 per cent decline following the notable falls by International Hotels Investments plc (IHI) and Malta International Airport plc (MIA) on low turnover.
Conversely, financials reinstated their buying interest position, which in turn proved a key source of support towards the broader market. In fact, Bank of Valletta plc (BOV) kept its upbeat tone for the fourth consecutive week, followed by HSBC Bank Malta plc, while Fimbank plc returned to the trading desk following last week’s absence with a fresh year-to-date high. On the same note, RS2 Software plc upheld its bullish trend with staggering gains following news of the possibility of a foreign company acquiring 10 per cent of its outstanding shares.
Looking at the numbers, trading value for the week reached €956,954, which was traded over a total of 715,166 shares.
Gainers maintained their reigning momentum, as out of the 16 active stocks, 10 climbed higher, two were pushed down, while four remained unchanged.
Overseas, global equity markets closed the week on a lower note, despite experiencing a respite on Thursday following better than expected data. In fact, on Thursday, major indices edged higher following earlier dips, as retail sales for May from the largest economy, the US, registered a 0.6 per cent increase, which was better than the 0.4 per cent estimates and notably healthier from the 0.1 per cent recorded in April.
But the breathing space was cut short on Friday following comments by International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding the US economy, in addition to lower than expected industrial data and renewed quantitative easing tapering worries.
The IMF said that despite the likelihood that the Federal Reserve will maintain its bond purchasing programme at least until the end of this year, its exit might be risky if not handled properly.
In addition, notwithstanding its 1.9 per cent growth forecast for the US for this year, the IMF revised downwards its 2014 growth forecast from three per cent to 2.7 per cent. As a result, major indices worldwide fell between one per cent to just under two per cent over the week.
Domestically, from the financial sector, Lombard Bank plc headed the list of gainers with a three per cent appreciation. The equity managed to renew buying support in the last session of the week over 5,300 shares to close the week at €1.75.
Likewise, HSBC Bank Malta plc captured a 1.5 per cent gain over modest volumes of 58,094 to move back to €2.73, while Fimbank plc locked a new year-to-date high of $1.025 over significant volumes of 293,600 shares.
Similarly, investors expressed confidence in BOV shares, as the banking equity added a further 0.7 per cent to its share value to end the week at €2.28, thus posting a notable gain of 3.6 per cent over the past four weeks. The equity enjoyed the lion’s share of total trading value with €307,706 being traded over 135,535 shares.
Meanwhile, in the same sector, Middlesea Insurance plc managed a minimal 0.1 per cent gain to break its recent downward trend.
From the beverage sector, fresh all-time highs re-emerged over Simonds Farsons Cisk plc, as the equity jumped by 3.8 per cent on Friday to close the week at €2.75. In addition, Plaza Centres plc recovered from last week’s decline with a 1.8 per cent gain to reposition itself at €0.57.
From the aviation industry, MIA shares reached another all-time-high as the airport operator appreciated by two per cent to close at €2.04, despite falling by 1.2 per cent on Thursday.
Meanwhile, from the IT sector, RS2 surged exponentially from Wednesday to Friday by 15.2 per cent to close at €1.275, after falling lower by 0.9 per cent on Tuesday. Meanwhile, there was a high volume of changes of share ownership as 109,200 shares were traded over 22 transactions.
Furthermore, in its annual general meeting, which was held last Wednesday, all resolutions on the agenda were approved, among which the final net dividend of €0.02c5, in addition to the extraordinary resolution of increasing its share capital by €500,000.
In the same sector, Crimsonwing plc closed the week unchanged at €0.58, while 6pm Holdings plc followed the former’s footsteps by remaining static at £0.60.
On Tuesday, 6pm announced that at its AGM, which was held on the same day, all resolutions were approved, including that of a net dividend of £0.016.
On a sour note, IHI closed markedly lower by 3.3 per cent over low volumes of 1,000 shares, while from the same line of business, Island Hotels Group Holdings plc managed to recover further ground by posting a 6.5 per cent gain to close at €0.57.
Meanwhile, the other loser of the week was Go plc, which fell by 0.8 per cent over two sessions to close at €1.537, while Grand Harbour Marina plc and Malita Investments plc both closed unchanged at €1.95 and €0.51 respectively, on low volumes traded.
Last Friday, Mediterranean Bank plc announced that it will issue €10 million worth of subordinated bonds in aggregate, at a coupon of 7.5 per cent, redeemable in 2019, following the necessary approval by the listing authority.
The bonds will be issued at par in tranches denominated in euro and Sterling of a nominal €100 and £100 per bond respectively, and are unsecured and subordinated.
Prospective investors are urged to read the prospectus, which will be available from authorised intermediaries as of tomorrow, so as to obtain all relevant details, and to seek advice from an independent financial adviser prior to investing.
This article, which was compiled by Jesmond Mizzi, managing director of Jesmond Mizzi Financial Advisors Ltd, does not intend to give investment advice and the contents therein should not be construed as such. The company is licensed to conduct investment services by the MFSA and a member of the Malta Stock Exchange and a member of the Atlas Group. The directors or related parties, including the company, and their clients are likely to have an interest in securities mentioned in this article. The company is acting as sponsor to the Mediterranean Bank plc bond issue referred to in this article. For further information contact Jesmond Mizzi at 67 Level 3, South Street, Valletta, or on Tel: 2122 4410 or e-mail jesmond.mizzi@jesmondmizzi.com.