Reuters: Hot Stocks: STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Shares down at midday; Wilmar drags

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STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Shares down at midday; Wilmar drags May 10th 2012, 05:05 Thu May 10, 2012 1:05am EDT Singapore shares fell for the second straight session, dragged by palm oil heavyweight Wilmar International Ltd after it posted worse-than-expected quarterly earnings. The benchmark Straits Times Index lost 0.2 percent at 2894.94, hitting a three-month intraday low at 2,887.82. Shares of Wilmar, the world's largest listed palm oil firm, plunged by as much as 9 percent to a three-year low, after it said its first quarter net profit fell 34 percent to $255.9 million, hit by weak margins at its largely China-based oilseeds and grains business. Shares of Singapore Airlines were down 2.3 percent after the world's second-largest carrier posted an unexpected fourth-quarter loss, hit by weak demand and high fuel prices. Shipping firm Neptune Orient Lines also fell after it reported its fifth consecutive quarterly loss. However, UOB Asset Management is keeping its overweight position on Singapore and said the "earnings cycle appears to be bottoming this quarter". It expects the STI to consolidate around 3,000 before moving higher, underpinned by earnings upgrades in the next quarter, UOB said in a report. 1243 (0443 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 11:59 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-ST Engineering up after results Shares of Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd (ST Engineering) gained as much as 2.7 percent after the company reported a 21 percent rise in quarterly profit. "Our confidence in STE's earnings growth remains despite a choppy global outlook, thanks to its impressive S$1.8 billion orders year to date," brokerage CIMB said in a report and retained its outperforming rating with a S$3.49 price target. ST Engineering shares were up 2.4 percent at S$3.04 in a broader market down 0.3 percent. The shares have risen around 13 percent so far this year, outperforming the market. "ST Engineering has a solid business model underpinned by defence contracts, with earnings visibility continually provided by its growing orderbook," Maybank Kim Eng Research said and maintained its buy rating and a price target of S$3.60. For ST Engineering's results, click: link.reuters.com/vug28s 1145 (0345 GMT) (Reporting by Eveline Danubrata in Singapore; eveline.danubrata@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 10:20 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-CIMB cuts Perennial China target CIMB Research lowered its target price for Perennial China Retail Trust to S$0.59 from S$0.65, citing lower rents and slower-than-expected leasing activity. Units of Perennial China, which owns shopping centres in China, shed 2 percent to S$0.495, but have gained about 4 percent so far this year. Perennial China reported that its distribution per unit for the first quarter was 3.81 Singapore cents, but CIMB said the trust's profits from its joint entities came in below expectations due to weaker rental contributions. The repositioning and leasing of Perennial China's shopping malls in Shenyang, China, are likely to take effect in the fourth quarter and the start of 2013, CIMB said and retained its outperform rating on the stock. For related story, click link.reuters.com/dug28s 1013 (0213 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 10:03 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Neptune Orient at 4-mth low after Q1 loss Shares of Neptune Orient Lines Ltd (NOL) fell as much as 3 percent to a four-month low after the container shipping firm reported a disappointing first-quarter net loss and warned of a bleak outlook. NOL, around two-thirds owned by Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings, reported January-March net loss of $254 million, much wider than a loss of $10 million a year ago. The poor results prompted Maybank Kim Eng to cut its target price for NOL to S$0.85 from S$1.20, and keep its sell rating. "The perfect storm of global economic uncertainties, mixed with persistently high bunker costs and overcapacity concerns have seemingly ended NOL's hope of a quick recovery," Kim Eng said in a report. "NOL has a combination that we find unappealing- highest financial leverage, worse operating results and most expensive share valuation," Barclays said in a report and retained its underweight rating on NOL with a target price of S$1.06. It said NOL trades at one times its price-to-book valuation, for the first quarter versus 0.9 times for China Shipping Container Lines Co Ltd (CSCL), despite the latter's stronger operating performance. It has an overweight rating on CSCL. NOL shares were down 2.2 percent at S$1.135, and are little changed so far this year, underperforming the market. For related story, click 0951 (0151 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 08:41 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Index futures down 0.2 pct Singapore index futures fell 0.2 percent early on Thursday, signaling a lacklustre start for the Straits Times Index as weak corporate earnings from heavyweights like Singapore Airlines looked set to weigh. Asian shares were also down as sentiment took a hit from mounting worries about the health of Spanish banks and deepening political chaos in Greece that put the country at risk of insolvency and an exit from the euro. 0836 (0036 GMT) (Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore; charmian.kok@thomsonreuters.com) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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