Shares slip amid mixed messages from AGMs

The New Zealand sharemarket hit a 16-month low yesterday with a fall of nearly 1 per cent following further mixed messages on company earnings from the latest annual meetings.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index continued to slide throughout the day on light trading and closed at 10,766.82, down 81.72 points or 0.75 per cent.

The index finished a gloomy week with a decline of more than 2 per cent and has fallen 6 per cent so far this year, most of the damage being done since the end of August when bond yields began rising.

There were 82 decliners and 42 gainers over the whole market on low volumes of 25.08 million share transactions worth $78.69m.

Shane Solly, portfolio manager with Harbour Asset Management, said there was definitely a move away from New Zealand shares in asset allocations.

“The gentailers have come under pressure with the rising bond yields and companies are producing mixed outlooks from their annual meetings.

“Port of Tauranga was a disappointment on the day with a significant reduction in earnings that were below market expectation, but there were compounding factors,”

Solly said. “There was something for everyone in the Fletcher Building outlook — some parts of the business are going well while others are soft.”

Port of Tauranga fell 25c or 4.63 per cent to $5.15, its lowest close since the start of January in 2019. The port company told shareholders at the annual meeting that total trade was down 9 per cent for the three months ending September and full-year earnings are expected to be $95m-$107m, lower than last year’s group net profit of $117.1m.

Fletcher Building and SkyCity Entertainment made gains following their annual meetings.

Fletcher was up 1c to $4.36 after telling shareholders that trading cash flows (excluding legacy construction) are expected to be robust in the present 2024 financial year.

SkyCity also increased, up 2c to $1.90 after confirming a modest yearon-year increase in operating earnings (ebitda) on the back of a good performance in July and August, driven by the impact of the FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare was down 25c to $20.45, its lowest level since November 18 last year when it reached $20.50, and Mainfreight hit a three-year low after falling $2.41 or 4.06 per cent to $57.01. Another market leader, Ebos Group, fell 86c or 2.44 per cent to $34.39.

The interest rate-sensitive energy stocks were again weak. Mercury fell

26.5c or 4.4 per cent to $5.755; Contact was down 10c to $7.80; Meridian declined 1c to $4.88; Genesis shed 5c or 2.11 per cent to $2.32; and Manawa decreased 4c to $4.25.

Technology stock Serko was down

15c or 3.66 per cent to $3.95 and movie software company Vista decreased 4c or 2.99 per cent to $1.30.