Pressure on F&P shares sets tone for the day

New Zealand’s market fell in tandem with Fisher & Paykel Healthcare shares yesterday after the healthcare products manufacturer said it expects its first-half revenue to drop by 26 per cent and net profit to more than halve as Covid-related sales continue to fade. The S&P/NZX 50 index fell 129.5 points, or 1.1 per cent, to 11,684.81. Turnover on the main board was $110.1 million.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare shares fell 9.6 per cent to $19.11 after the company’s announcement yesterday morning, but made up some lost ground through the day and were down 6.15 per cent to $19.85 by early evening.

Stock market operator NZX shares jumped 3.1 per cent to $1.35 after its management discussed the recent Kiwi Wealth sale on an analyst call on Friday morning.

Shares in My Food Bag were up 2.8 per cent to 73 cents after the company’s cofounder Cecilia Robinson was elected to the board at its annual meeting yesterday. Entrepreneur Robinson is also a founder of Tend Health and a Pie Funds board member.

Genesis Energy reported underlying earnings marginally ahead of guidance at $440.3m off the back of strong hydroelectric generation despite soft earnings from its Kupe oil and gas field, and its shares fell 1.2 per cent to $2.95. Energy companies Mercury NZ and Contact Energy also reported earnings earlier in the week. Yesterday, Mercury was down 0.3 per cent to $6.28 and

Contact Energy was also down, 1.1 per cent to $7.86.

Meridian Energy was down 0.8 per cent to $5.26, and Manawa Energy fell 1.6 per cent to $6.25.

Restaurant Brands NZ fell 2 per cent to $9.11. Restaurant Brands — which operates the KFC, Pizza Hut, Carl’s Jr and Taco Bell franchises — warned in July that the company will report a weaker half-year profit on August 29.

Heartland Group was up 2.4 per cent to $2.16 on light volume while Westpac was down 0.2 per cent to $24.60. ANZ Bank rose

1.8 per cent to $25.61. Rubber manufacturer Skellerup was up 0.5 per cent to $5.95. The company breezed past its previous guidance on Thursday and lifted annual net profit by

19 per cent to $47.8m. The rubber manufacturer attributed its growth to its “unwavering focus” on its customers and products.

Auckland International Airport fell 0.4 per cent to $7.62.

The airport had beaten its profit guidance on Thursday, but the market wasn’t happy with its outlook and it ended the day in the red.

On the currency front, the NZ dollar was sitting at 62.31 US cents at 3pm yesterday, down from 62.73 US cents on Thursday.