Market commentaries

AUCKLAND: New Zealand shares edged higher yesterday, led by Spark New Zealand and Arvida Group, while Scales Corp and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare weakened.

The S&P/NZX50 Index gained 6.8 points, or 0.08%, to 8645.2. Within the index, 21 stocks rose, 20 fell and nine were unchanged. Turnover was $116 million.

Spark was the best performer, rising 2.4% to $3.635 having outlined plans to accelerate restructuring last week, while Arvida gained 2.4% ahead of an earnings announcement today and Fletcher Building rose 2% to $6.68.

Investore Property rose 1.4% to $1.48. The largeformat retail landlord, spun out of Stride Property, boosted its annual earnings 16% as the acquisition of three Bunnings stores added to rental income and reduced its reliance on Countdown supermarkets. Distributable profit, a favoured measure of listed property firms which strips out revaluation movements and the impact of property sales, rose to $20.5 million in the 12 months ended March 31 from $17.6 million a year earlier.

Kathmandu Holdings was the worst performer, down 2.8% to $2.43, while Fonterra Shareholders Fund fell 1.9% to $5.23 in continued weakness since it last week cut its projected dividend payments as increased global dairy prices pushed up what it plans to pay to its farmer shareholders.

Scales declined 2.3% to $4.74. A notice to the stock exchange yesterday showed managing director Andy Borland cut his stake in the NZXlisted agribusiness on April 23, with the shares trading near a record high. Borland still owns 750,000 shares in the family trust and another 228,931 through Scales’ senior executive share scheme.

F&P Healthcare dropped 1.3% to $13.18. New Zealand’s biggest listed healthcare technology company lifted 2018 annual profit to the top end of its forecast range and said it expects record earnings in the coming year as it benefits from growing global demand. Profit rose 12% to $190.2 million in the year ended March 31.

The company forecast 2019 annual operating revenue in its 50th year of operation of about $1.05 billion and profit of about $210 million.

‘‘It delivered a really solid result. The outlook was bang in line but guidance was a big miss for the consensus viewpoint,’’ Peter McIntyre, investment adviser at Craigs Investment Partners, said.A The Australian sharemarket closed lower yesterday after weaker oil prices weighed heavily on the energy giants and mining giant BHP Billiton.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 0.48% to 6004 points, while the broader All Ordinaries fell 0.45% to 6113.6 points.

Bell Direct equities analyst Julia Lee said the lower oil prices not only weighed on energy companies but also mining giant BHP Billiton.

Energy giant Woodside Petroleum dropped $1.16, or 3.5%, to $31.70, Santos declined 21c, or 3.5%, to $5.68, Oil Search shed 18 cents, or 2.2%, to $8.03, while Beach Energy tumbled 16.5c, or 9.6%, to $1.555.

BHP lost 96c, or 2.9% to $32.11, or 0.9%, to $4.50, while Rio Tinto was 5c or 0.1% lower at $83.12.

All four major banks were down, ranging from Westpac’s 0.07% dip to ANZ’s 0.5% drop.