Shares fall despite Tegel’s 37% leap
New Zealand shares dipped yesterday with Westpac and ANZ banks down, as the banking scandal across the Tasman deepens, while Tegel Group surged on a planned takeover offer.
The S/NZX50 index fell 6.59 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 8282.05. Within the index, 21 stocks fell, 17 rose, and 12 were unchanged. Turnover was $163.6 million.
The biggest story of the day was outside the benchmark index, where Tegel Group surged 37 per cent to $1.12.
Philippines-based poultry group Bounty Fresh Foods will mount a $437.8 million takeover bid for Tegel at $1.23, with the share price having been beaten up after multiple earnings downgrades.
Bounty Fresh will pursue a full takeover when it formally lodges an offer, but will accept a 50 per cent stake, the notice of intention document shows. Other conditions include securing Overseas Investment Office approval and for Tegel to meet certain earnings thresholds.
“It’s trading little below the bid price on reasonable volume. A number of businesses within New Zealand stand out as being attractive to corporates globally, and Tegel obviously resonates pretty well,” said Shane Solly, director at Harbour Asset Management. “Bounty being a Philippines-based organisation obviously it has to go through OIO, it’s an interesting test of the new government’s increased scrutiny.”
Tegel saw $15m in turnover, mak- ing it the fifth-most traded stock on the NZX All Capital Index.
Westpac led the benchmark lower, down 3.4 per cent to $30.05, while fellow Australian-owned bank ANZ dropped 1.9 per cent to $28.40.
In Australia, the sector has come under fire over revelations made at a Royal Commission public inquiry into misconduct within the banking and finance industries. Auckland Inter- national Airport fell 0.3 per cent to $6.18. In an initial finding, the Commerce Commission said it is concerned the airport is planning to make excessive profits on its regulated assets.
The best performer was Gentrack Group, which rose 3.6 per cent to $6.84. Fisher Paykel Healthcare gained 1.9 per cent to $12.43.
“We’re seeing a bit of strength in Fisher Paykel — it had some recent positive releases with research about COPD [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis and chronic asthma] and using its humidifier so that’s the basis for many people, including ourselves, to think positive in the long term on Fisher Paykel,” Solly said.