Stocks to watch: Delegat's, Guinness Peat, IRG, Telecom

Friday 4th September 2009

The following stocks may be active on the New Zealand exchange after developments since the close of trading yesterday.

Themes of the day: Shares on Wall Street rose as stronger-than-expected sales at retailers boosted companies including Costco Wholesale. The price of gold climbed to almost US$1,000 an ounce as the U.S. dollar weakened. The European Central Bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 1% and President Jean-Claude Trichet said the region’s recovery will be “uneven.”

Delegat's Group Ltd. (NZX: DGL ): The shares are rated a ‘buy’ by Goldman Sachs JB Were analyst Adrian Allbon, according to the ShareChat website. The winemaker has reduced debt more than expected and lifted pricing in a difficult market, he said. Case volumes rose 20% to 1.738 million. The shares rose 2 cents to $2.33 yesterday.

Guinness Peat Group (NZX: GPG ): Mike Smithyman, chief executive of GPG’s Coats unit, will retire from the company effective Dec. 31. Coats chairman Gary Weiss said Paul Forman, currently CEO of polymer-based materials manufacturer Low & Bonar, will replace Smithyman. GPG posted a 22 million pound first-half loss, partly reflecting losses from Coats, its biggest investment. The shares fell 2 cents to 82 cents yesterday.

Investment Research Group (NZX: IRG ): Tony Falkenstein’s Edwin Trust will inject $400,000 into IRG, helping strengthen the balance sheet two weeks after the investment advisory and brokerage group gained a waiver from its banks over a covenant breach. The trust will buy some 17.8 million shares at 2.25 cents apiece. The shares, which trade infrequently, slumped 61% to 1.1 cents on Wednesday.

NZ Farming Systems Uruguay (NZX: NZS ): The shares rose 4.4% to 48 cents yesterday, the second daily gain since Singapore’s Olam International announced it had bought 14% of the stock and the price of milk powder surged 24% in Fonterra’s monthly auction. The ANZ Commodity Price Index yesterday recorded a 5% gain in world dairy prices.

OceanaGold Corp. (NZX: OGC ): Gold for December delivery rose 2% to US$997.70 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange, and earlier climbed to US$999.50. Silver climbed 6% to US$16.29 an ounce. The shares surged 16 cents to $1.19 yesterday.

PGG Wrightson (NZX: PGW ): New Zealand’s biggest rural services company yesterday ‘clarified’ statements it made with its annual results to make clear it had avoided a breach of its banking covenants by gaining a waiver before they were triggered. It has hired two brokerages to assist with a capital review and may sell assets and shares. The shares fell 2.9% to 68 cents yesterday.

Telecom Corp. (NZX: TEL ): Today is the record date for the phone company’s 6 cents a share fourth-quarter dividend. The shares rose 2.6% to $2.80 yesterday, giving the stock a dividend yield of 13%.

Businesswire.co.nz

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