The $140m sale of Vista shares dominated trading on the NZ sharemarket today. Photo / Getty Images
The $140 million sale of a 20% shareholding in Vista Group by an Australian private equity firm dominated trading on the New Zealand sharemarket as it resumed its upward trend.
The S&P/NZX 50 Index quickly fell to 13,018.63 – six leading stocks went ex-dividend – but fired up in the afternoon and closed at 13,133.2, up 58.39 points or 0.45%.
There were 84 gainers and 50 decliners on the main board on volumes of 84.8 million share transactions worth $264.9 million.
‘A chunky trade’
Vista Group, which supplies management software to cinemas worldwide, accounted for nearly a fifth of the activity, with 46.78 million shares worth $140.35m changing hands.
Sydney-based Potentia Capital sold its 19.19% holding in dual-listed Vista in a block trade managed by Jarden Group at $3 a share.
Vista finished the busy day down 13c or 4.11% to $3.03 after reaching $4 on March 14.
Potentia bought in at $2.10 a share 15 months ago and failed to get some of its people on the Vista board.
Jeremy Sullivan, investment adviser with Hamilton Hindin Greene, said it’s just a private equity firm doing private equity things.
“But $140m worth of shares in a $726m company (by market capitalisation) is a chunky trade.”
In the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was steady at 45,271.23 points; the S&P 500 gained 0.51% to 6,448.26; and the Nasdaq Composite increased 1.02% to 21,497.73.
Gold climbed to new heights at US$3550 (NZ$6042) an ounce, a rise of more than 40% during the past year.
Sullivan said the Nasdaq was buoyed by the antitrust court ruling in favour of Google, and the markets were waiting for an expected 25-basis-point cut in interest rates by the US Federal Reserve later this month.
Alphabet, owner of Google, climbed 9.01% to US$231.10 following the US Federal Court ruling that it didn’t have to sell its Chrome browser, which remains the dominant player in global web traffic.
Google still faces legal battles. Later this month, the Justice Department will press its case over alleged monopolies in advertising technology, and Google continues to appeal rulings related to its Play Store practices.
Other stocks
At home, Hallenstein Glasson came off its strong run by falling 28c or 3.08% to $8.82, and Gentrack was down 45c or 4.49% to $9.58.
Global marketer a2 Milk was down 2c to $10.17 after falling as low as $9.87 during the day after a downgrade from Forsyth Barr. The broker said a2 Milk’s price-to-earnings valuation is elevated and its market share expectations in China are stretched.
Forsyth Barr said: “We remain constructive on the growth outlook, the medium-term market share opportunity (supported by new products), and margin growth through a2 Pokeno, but see this as more than reflected in the current share price on the balance of probabilities.”
Among the stocks that went ex-dividend, Ebos Group was down 3.5c to $31.75, but Sky TV gained 6.5c or 2.12% to $3.13, and Vector increased 12c or 2.67% to $4.61.
Meridian Energy, down 3.15c to $5.72 and also ex-dividend, has filled its $350m, 6.5-year green bond, with oversubscriptions of $100m. The bonds will be issued next Thursday with an interest rate of 4.55% a year.
The dual-listed banking groups recovered, with ANZ up 41c to $36.91 and Westpac gained 53c to $41.98.
Freightways added 16c to $12.19; Mainfreight was up 98c to $63.88; Chorus gained 15c to $9.876; Vulcan Steel increased 13c to $7.73; and wine exporter Delegat Group climbed a further 13c or 2.97% to $4.51.
Retirement village operator Oceania Healthcare was up 3c or 4.55% to 69c; travel software provider Serko increased 17c or 6.72% to $2.70; and advanced electronics manufacturer Rakon rose 3c or 3.57% to 87c.
Forsyth Barr upgraded Stride Property, up 1c to $1.29, as having underperformed in a sector that has increased 12% so far this year. The property sector has outperformed the broader New Zealand market.
Goodman Property Trust gained 3c to $2.14; Property for Industry increased 3.5c to $2.46; and land developer Winton Land was up a further 5c or 2.17% to $2.35. KMD Brands was unchanged at 25c after detailing its transformation plan called Next Level at its Investor Day.
KMD’s share price has fallen from 53c since the start of October last year. KMD, which owns Kathmandu and Rip Curl, said it was sharpening its focus and resetting for sustainable profitability through an organisational restructure, store network review, product innovation and building stronger brands. The reset will cost a minimum $25m.