NZ shares fall to end the week - Market close

Freightways led the benchmark index lower on Friday, falling 3.9% to $9.35.

New Zealand shares petered out ahead of US employment data seen as central to the Federal Reserve’s upcoming rate cuts, as Infratil and Fisher & Paykel’s lofty heights underpinned the weekly gain.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index declined 63.16 points, or 0.5%, to 12,651.51, to end the week up 1.3%. Across the main board, 86 stocks fell, 50 rose and 43 were unchanged. Turnover was $111.8 million, with eight companies trading on volumes of more than a million shares.

Stock markets across Asia were mixed ahead of US nonfarm payrolls figures, which analysts say may determine the size of the Fed’s rate cut later this month. Other labour market figures have shown the US jobs market has been cooling.

“It’s probably one of the more important data releases over the last month and in the run-up to the Fed meeting,” said Greg Smith, head of retail at Devon Funds Management. “There are some concerns that the US economy may be slowing too fast, and they don’t want anything that disrupts the soft landing.”

That unwound some of the week’s gains, with the local market propelled higher by Infratil and F&P Healthcare toying with all-time highs.

Infratil edged up 0.04% to $11.90 on a volume of 1.8 million, taking its weekly gain to 7.8% as analysts reassessed the infrastructure investor’s CDC Data Centres business after the A$24 billion ($26b) AirTrunk deal across the Tasman.

Meanwhile, F&P Healthcare slipped 0.3% to $37.40, paring its weekly gain to 5.1%. The medical devices maker has rallied since raising its earnings outlook last month.

Freightways led the benchmark index lower on Friday, falling 3.9% to $9.35, while Skellerup declined 3.2% to $4.80 and Scales Corp slipped 2.7% to $3.64.

Hallenstein Glasson Group gave up some of Thursday’s gains on its earnings outlook, falling 3% to $6.21, to end the week up 4%. Other retailers were mixed, with Warehouse Group sliding 1.6% to $1.24, KMD Brands unchanged at 55c and Briscoe Group rising 1.5% to $4.75.

Air NZ declined 0.9% to 55.5c. Jarden analysts lowered their 12-month price target on the national carrier to 57c from 60c, while retaining their neutral rating.

Tourism Holdings fell 2.4% to $2.08 and Auckland International Airport increased 0.5% to $7.54.

Stride Property posted the biggest gain on the NZX 50, up 2.9% at $1.42, while ANZ Group rose 2.1% to $34.40.

Synlait Milk increased 1.2% to 41c after the Takeovers Panel and NZ RegCo rejected a complaint by founder and minority shareholder John Penno over the milk processor’s planned capital raising, which will heavily dilute the holdings of small investors. The a2 Milk Co, which is participating in the capital raising, rose 0.3% to $6.04.

Spark NZ was the most heavily traded major company, with 2.3 million shares traded. It closed unchanged at $3.52, having shed 2% this week as investors continued to weigh up the sustainability of its dividends with its aspirations to invest in data centres.

Among other companies trading on volumes of more than a million shares, Precinct Properties NZ declined 1.5% to $1.28 with 2.2 million shares traded, Vital Healthcare Property Trust slipped 0.3% to $1.935 on a volume of 2.1 million and Heartland Group fell 1.8% to $1.08 with 1.2 million shares changing hands.

Fletcher Building slipped 0.7% to $2.83 on a volume of 1.3 million. The building materials firm sank 7.8% this week as it pivots under the new leadership of Andrew Reding, who’s tasked with turning around the company’s fortunes.