Reuters: Hot Stocks: STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Banpu near 2-month high after upbeat outlook

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STOCKS NEWS THAILAND-Banpu near 2-month high after upbeat outlook Aug 14th 2012, 05:46 Tue Aug 14, 2012 1:46am EDT Shares in Banpu Pcl 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 . 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 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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