MARKET CLOSE: NZ shares fall from record; Air NZ, MRP drop

MARKET CLOSE: NZ shares fall from record; Air NZ, MRP, F&P decline

By Suze Metherell

Oct. 30 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand stocks fell, retreating from record levels as investors booked profits. Air New Zealand, MightyRiverPower and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare declined in a broad-based selloff.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 16.59 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5986.38. Within the index, 20 stocks fell, 20 rose and 10 were unchanged. Turnover was $160 million.

The benchmark index has advanced some 7 percent this month, recovering from September's volatility.

Air NZ, the national carrier whose shares have climbed 17 percent in October, fell 1.4 percent to $2.91. Metro Performance Glass, the glass manufacturer, declined 0.7 percent to $1.53, after a 13 percent monthly gain. F&P Healthcare, the breathing apparatus manufacturer, dropped 0.8 percent to $7.78, after a monthly gain of 9.6 percent. MightyRiverPower, the utility company, slipped 1.1 percent to $2.80 after an 11 percent gain. Meridian Energy fell 1.3 percent to $2.22, after advancing 6 percent in the month.

"It's a bit of profit-taking," said Mark Lister, head of private wealth research at Craig's Investment Partners, whose 49.9 percent owner Deutsche Bank has announced its intentions to exit the New Zealand market. "It's been an outstandingly strong month for the local market. It's been a very good month for shares pretty much everywhere. You've had your central banks around the world stepping up and doing more, the economic data locally has been pretty solid, and the annual meeting season has been pretty solid."

Australia New Zealand Banking Group led the benchmark index lower, down 5.5 percent to $28.74.

Xero advanced 3.2 percent to $15.99. The cloud-based accounting software developer slowed its quarterly cash burn in the-September quarter as customer receipts rose at a faster pace than its wage costs.

TrustPower rose 1.7 percent to $7.80 after the utility announced flat earnings for the first half of the year on an underlying profit after tax basis, reporting a 1 percent uplift on the same period last year at $68.3 million.

Spark New Zealand rose 0.9 percent to $3.36. The telecommunications operator has pulled a proposal to boost directors' fees by 5 percent, after negative feedback from shareholders.

NZX was unchanged at 96 cents. The stock exchange operator lifted revenue 13 percent in the third quarter to $18.6 million, as its recently acquired fund management business, SuperLife, boosted income.

A2 Milk Co, the milk marker, was the best performer on the benchmark index, up 4.1 percent to 76 cents.

Outside the benchmark index, Briscoe Group rose 3.2 percent to $2.89. The retailer, whose hostile takeover of Kathmandu Holdings was spurned earlier this year, lifted third-quarter sales 7.1 percent to $115.9 million, with bigger gains in its sporting goods stores. It anticipates annual profit growth for a seventh year in a row. Kathmandu, the outdoor goods chain, rose 0.6 percent to $1.57.

OceanaGold, which operates gold mines in Otago and Waihi, fell 3.9 percent to $2.72 after reported a 59 percent drop in third-quarter profit to US$6.9 million as planned maintenance reduced copper production at its Didipio mine in the Philippines, weighing on revenue.

(BusinessDesk)

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