Shares of southern companies hit
Ryman Healthcare took the largest decline on the Deloitte South Island Index in the last quarter of 2016.
It was the biggest fall for the index - 5.2 per cent - since it was started in 2007, and came after a record peak in September 2016.
The index measures market capitalisation - the total value of the shares at a particular time.
Ryman’s share price fall of 15.8 per cent to $8.10 each was not the result of poor financial performance, but rather shareholder perception especially from overseas investors, according to Deloitte partner Scott McCLay.
He attributed it to uncertainty in the post-Brexit environment, and election of US president Donald Trump, rather than other factors such as falling dividend yields following strong share price rises.
McClay said people tended to invest in companies such as Ryman and Ebos less for dividend returns than for share price growth over time.
Total returns to shareholders from these companies, including share price growth, were historically strong and they had posted good results recently, he said.
Ryman, Ebos (11.4 per cent share price decline to $16.70) and Skyline Enterprises (down 12 per cent to $22 a share) are three of the biggest companies on the index along with Meridian Energy, which was steady.
The losers were offset by top share price performer, retirement village oper- ator Arvida Group, which grew its market capitalisation 27 per cent (to $1.35 a share).
Other top performers included cancer diagnostics company Pacific Edge (up 28.2 per cent), apple exporter Scales Corporation (up 6.8 per cent), Skellerup Holdings (up 11 per cent) and Synlait Milk (up 5 per cent).
The 5 per cent fall of the Deloitte South Island Index was mirrored by the wider NZX50 which lost 7 per cent.
The index is made up of 30 South Island listed companies with combined market capitalisation of $18.4 billion in the last quarter of 2016.
Performance of the heavyweights in the index has improved slightly over the past two months.
The index was started by McClay to rebalance what he saw as underreporting of southern companies.