The MSE Equity Total Return Index declined by 0.5 per cent this week, to close at 8,668.684 points, surrendering a large portion of last week’s gains. The equities’ market was dominated by selling pressure as out of 18 active equities, ten closed lower, while five headed north.
Investor participation was down from last week’s highs as a turnover of €1.1 million was registered over 157 transactions.
The main catalysts of this negative performance were Lombard Bank Malta plc, International Hotel Investments plc and Loqus Holdings plc, all of which suffered sizeable losses in value.
Lombard Bank Malta plc was the only equity in the banking industry to trade in negative territory, as it slumped 11.4 per cent.
This was the result of a couple of trades of a combined 11,067 shares, both of which were executed at a price of €2.02.
Bank of Valletta plc (BOV) was responsible for about a quarter of total turnover as 137,515 shares were exchanged over 50 deals. As a result, the equity was up at €1.76. Also, in the banking industry, HSBC Bank Malta plc followed suit, as its share price climbed to close at €1.85.
On Monday, FIMBank plc announced that its board will be meeting on August 14 to consider and approve the consolidated financial statements for the six-month period ended June 30. No trades were recorded for the equity during this week.
Telecommunications company, GO plc, was the best performing equity of the week, as it advanced 4.24 per cent, recovering two weeks’ losses.
International Hotel Investments plc moved in the opposite direction as it sank to €0.61. The equity traded three times as 53,181 shares were exchanged.
On Monday, Malta International Airport plc published its traffic results for the month of June. The positive trend experienced during this year persisted as passenger movements were up by 14.6 per cent over the previous year.
This growth was in line with a 15.1 per cent increase in aircraft movements.
On Tuesday the company also announced that its board shall be meeting on July 25 to consider and approve the company’s interim financial statements for the first half of 2018.
The equity traded flat at €5.05 despite generating a turnover of €48,490 across eight deals.
MaltaPost plc edged 0.6 per cent, down to a price of €1.65, as a result of five transactions of a combined 12,086 shares.
Mapfre Middlesea plc traded five times as 4,968 shares were negotiated. As a result, a loss in value of 2.06 per cent was registered, settling at €1.90.
The share price of RS2 Software plc closed unchanged at €1.20 this week, as three transactions of 12,090 shares were registered.
Simonds Farsons Cisk plc extended its positive run to three straight weeks, with a further gain, to a price of €7.20.
Retail conglomerate, PG plc was the most liquid equity this week as it generated a turnover of €367,521.
Loqus Holdings plc was the worst performer of the week as it plunged 14.29 per cent, setting a new all-time low of €0.06.
The property sector had a very negative week as five equities posted falls. The worst performer in the industry was Malita Investments plc which declined by 4.49 per cent to €0.85. Similarly, MIDI plc shaved off 0.82 per cent in value to a price of €0.486.
Following the previous week’s losses, Malta Properties Company plc drifted lower to €0.492. The equity traded on slim volume as just three trades of a combined 3,134 shares were struck.
Last week’s price increase for Trident Estates plc proved unsustainable, as the share price retracted to close the week at €1.30. In the same sector, four transactions of 17,570 Main Street Complex plc shares dragged the share price down by 0.75 per cent to €0.665.
Plaza Centres plc was the only positive exception in the property sector, as a single transaction of 1,000 shares pushed the share price upwards by 2.88 per cent, to close at €1.07.
The corporate debt market had quite a balanced week, as from a total of 33 active issues, ten gained ground while eight headed in the opposite direction.
The 4% International Hotel Investments plc Secured € 2026 managed to recover the previous week’s loss as it advanced 1.22 per cent to recapture the €104 price level. The 5.1% 6PM Holding plc Unsecured € 2025, topped the list of gainers with a price increase of 2.15 per cent to €94.95.
Conversely, the 5.75% Medserv plc Unsecured USD 2026 continued on last week’s negative performance as it headed the list of fallers this week. The bond closed the week at par, translating to a 2.9 per cent decrease in price.
In the local sovereign debt market, 22 issues were active registering mixed performances, with the short-dated bonds drifted lower, while the longer-dated issues headed north. In fact, the MGS with the longest date to maturity, the 2.4% MGS 2041 (I), logged the best performance as it pushed forward to €106.95. At the other end of the spectrum, the 5.1% MGS 2022 (I) posted a fall of 0.18 per cent to close at €119.57.