NZX CLOSE: NZ shares rise; Farming Systems, Telecom gain

Thursday 3rd September 2009

New Zealand shares rose, snapping a three-day slide, as NZ Farming Systems Uruguay gained with dairy prices and the arrival of a new shareholder, and investors sought Telecom Corp. to benefit from its final dividend.

The NZX 50 Index rose 16.92, or 0.6%, to 3091.57. Within the index, 19 stocks gained, 20 fell and 11 were unchanged. Turnover was $106.9 million.

NZ Farming Systems (NZX: NZS ) rose 4.4% to 48 cents, its 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, out today, recorded a 5% gain in world dairy prices.

Telecom (NZX: TEL ) rose 2.6% to $2.80. The biggest company on the NZX 50 will pay its 6 cents-a-share final dividend to shareholders as of Sept. 4. At today’s price, Telecom has a dividend yield of13%.

Fletcher Building (NZX: FBU ), New Zealand’s biggest construction company, climbed 1.5% to $7.69 amid increased optimism for a recovery in the housing market. Barfoot & Thompson, Auckland’s biggest real estate firm, today said property sales rose 6.5% in August and July and jumped 65% from a year earlier.

“Housing market activity is clearly picking up and the most recent data suggests that this is now about to be reflected in a lift in residential construction,” said Daren Gibbs, chief economist at Deutsche Bank.

PGG Wrightson (NZX: PGW ), New Zealand’s biggest rural services company, fell 2.9% to 68 cents. The company today ‘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.

AMP Ltd (NZX: AMP ), the Australian insurance group, fell 3.1% to $7.80 on the NZX, leading the benchmark index lower, reflecting declines in Australian financials.

Hallenstein Glasson Holdings (NZX: HLG ) rose 3.7% to $2.80, leading gains in retailers. Michael Hill International (NZX: MHI ) gained 2.9% to 71 cents. Warehouse Group (NZX: WHS ), the biggest retailer on the NZX 50, gained 0.3% to $3.93.

Skellerup Holdings (NZX: SKL ), which manufactures rubber goods and milking equipment, gained 3.5% to 59 cents. The company said it hired Craigs Investment Partners as lead manager and lead underwriter for fully-underwritten renounceable rights issue. Skellerup will raise $21.5 million via the issue of two new shares for every five held at 40 cents apiece to repay debt.

Businesswire.co.nz

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