Reuters: Hot Stocks: STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Inflows build up; SET index breaches 1220-mark

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STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Inflows build up; SET index breaches 1220-mark Aug 14th 2012, 07:20 Tue Aug 14, 2012 3:20am EDT Foreign buying appetite in Thai shares appears to be on the rise with foreign net purchases building up in August after a modest net buying in July and net foreign selling in the two months before that, Thomson Reuters data showed. The Thai stock market reported net foreign inflows in six straight sessions to Aug. 10 to bring in $201 million, adding on to the $10 million inflows in July. May and June had seen a combined $650 million in outflows, d at a showed. The year-to-date inflows were $2.3 billion. The market has seen good demand for shares in key sectors, including bank and energy, so far this month amid hopes for good earnings growth for the rest of the year. At the midday break of 0530 GMT, the benchmark SET index edged up 0.2 percent at 1,221.82. The index was close to breaching the key technical level of 1,228 points -- last hit on July 19 -- and could extend beyond that to the next key level of 1,247, a 2012 high, said technical analyst Sasima Hattakitnikorn of broker Phillip Securities. "Technical indicators continued to flash buy signals. Without overbought conditions, the bullishness remained intact in the near term. Under this circumstance, further gains are warranted with a possible test of 1228," she said. Southeast Asian stock markets, in general, saw foreign money moving in during August. Indonesia took in $176 million in inflows in August to Monday, with the Philippines and Vietnam markets posting $8.8 million and $4.5 million inflows respectively. Foreign inflow data for Singapore and Malaysia was not available. 1333 (0633 GMT) (Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap in Bangkok; viparat.jantraprapaweth@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 12:46 STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Banpu near 2-month high after upbeat outlook Shares in Banpu Pcl BANP.BK rose to their highest in almost two months after the country's biggest coal miner provided a positive business outlook, outweighing weaker-than- expected quarterly earnings. Banpu shares rose 2.2 percent to 468 baht, the highest since July 19. The stock had fallen 14.7 percent so far in 2012, underperforming a 19.1 percent gain of the broader index .SETI. It was down 26.3 percent in the April-June quarter. Maybank Kim Eng Securities rated the stock 'buy', saying it was cheap compared to its target price of 560 baht and it expected an improvement in market demand in the year end due to seasonality. "We believe a sharp share price correction in the second quarter has somewhat reflected the plunge in coal prices to $80-90/tonne," it said in a report. Nineteen out of 22 analysts rated the stock at 'buy' or 'strong buy', two put it at 'hold', while one analyst had a 'strong sell' rating, according to Thomson Reuters StarMine. Banpu said it expected coal mines in Indonesia, its core production, to produce 7.2 million tonnes in the third quarter versus 6.62 million tonnes in the second quarter and it aimed for 27 million tonnes in 2012. For related stories, click (Full Story) (Full Story) 1219 (0519 GMT) (Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap in Bangkok; viparat.jantraprapaweth@thomsonreuters.com) ************************************************************ 10:25 STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-PTT down after weak Q2 Shares in PTT Pcl PTT.BK edged lower after the country's biggest energy firm reported a worse-than-expected quarterly net profit, raising concerns over a possible downgrade of earnings forecasts by analysts. PTT shares were down 0.6 percent at 340 baht. The stock had underperformed the wider stock market .SETI so far this year partly due to concerns over the impact of global oil price volatility on earnings. It was up 6.9 percent in 2012 compared with a 18.9 percent gain in the broader market. Despite the weak earnings, most analysts rated the stock a 'buy' due to expectations of an earnings recovery. Broker Citigroup said it maintained a 'buy' rating on the stock due to cheap valuation. "While likely facing an earnings downgrade wave, it is now trading at 1.2 times 2013 estimated price to book value with 16-17 percent returns on equity reflecting negative news mostly priced in," the broker said. "Upside could come from the government resuming its policy to raise domestic LPG and CNG prices higher to reflect PTT's gas feedstock cost," it said. Fifteen out of 20 analysts tracking the company rated the stock a 'buy' or 'strong' buy while five put a 'hold' rating. For the company statement and related story, click (Full Story) (Full Story) 1010 (0310 GMT) (Reporting by Viparat Jantraprap in Bangkok; viparat.jantraprapaweth@thomsonreuters.com) Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints

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