Monday 25 February 2013

Quote for the day


“Calling someone who trades actively in the market an investor is like calling someone who repeatedly engages in one-night stands a romantic”-  Warren Buffett

LSL Weekly Roundup 22nd Feb 2013


Negative implications of the West-backed human rights proceedings coupled with profit taking hit the indices in this week trading. Although the former point was accounted for during last year’s bearish trend, further proceedings by the West has hurt Sri Lanka’s image. We witness a mixed bag of results from the December 2012 quarter although companies in specific industries which are positioned to outperform others have posted improved results. A period of stock picking is upon us as we can expect a slight bearish trend in the near term.

ASI lost 55.67 points on Monday (-0.95%) to close at 5,774.59 and the S&P SL20 index lost 24.97 points (-0.76%) to close at 3,249.28. Turnover was Rs. 869.8Mn. Top contributors to turnover were John Keells Holdings with Rs. 357.8m, Asiri Surgical with Rs. 145.5m and Hatton National Bank with Rs. 48.9m. Most active counters for the day were Touchwood Investments, Central Investments & Finance, and Richard Pieris.

Indices closed lower again Tuesday with many blue-chips losing ground whilst John Keells Holdings managing to hold steady. Large deals on banking counters Hatton National Bank and Commercial Bank helped to boost turnover on day dominated by blue-chips.

ASI lost 37.11 points (0.64%) to close at 5,737.48 and the S&P SL20 index lost 10.71 points (0.33%) to close at 3,238.57. Turnover was Rs. 1,520.3m. Top contributors to turnover were Hatton National Bank with Rs. 799.5m, Commercial Bank with Rs. 281.0m and John Keells Holdings with Rs. 197.6Mn. Most active counters for the day were Central Investments & Finance, Sampath bank and John Keells Holdings.

Interest on John Keells Holdings failed to lift up spirits at the CSE Wednesday as the overall market was sluggish. A handful of blue-chips such DFCC, NDB, Ceylon Tobacco Company and Chevron Lubricants also gained ground. It seems buying interest is only evident in fundamentally sound blue-chips during the past few weeks. Yields on treasury bills were flat across all three maturities which might indicate that the interest rates will stabilize at prevailing levels.

ASI dipped 6.94 points (0.12%) to close at 5,730.54 and the S&P SL20 index lost 13.72 points (0.42%) to close at 3,224.85. Turnover was Rs. 763.5m.

John Keells Holdings was the bright light in a sluggish market as it helped to minimize the losses on the indices on Thursday. It reached a 52-week high of Rs. 235.30 with a block trade done at Rs. 235.00 whilst also contributing around 68% of the turnover. Banking stalwart Sampath Bank saw its share value plummet by Rs. 7.40 or 3.16% to Rs. 227.00. The counter’s price was partly driven by foreign accumulation and interest in the very recent past.

ASI dipped 4.43 points (0.08%) to close at 5,726.11 and the S&P SL20 index lost 5.35 points (0.17%) to close at 3,219.50. Turnover was Rs. 484.4Mn.

Further gains from John Keells Holdings managed to uplift the sentiment with Hatton National Bank and Commercial Bank also managing to close higher on Friday. HNB announced a Rs. 7.00 dividend today. Ceylon Tobacco Company saw its share value drop by around 2.1% to Rs. 800.00. As many counters are showing bearish trends, it is an ideal opportunity to buy at relatively lower prices and thereby benefiting from cyclical movements.

ASI gained 9.50 points (0.17%) to close at 5,735.61 and the S&P SL20 index gained 10.72 points (0.33%) to close at 3,223.28. Turnover was Rs. 300.1m. Top contributors to turnover were John Keells Holdings with Rs. 98.6m, Access Engineering with Rs. 22.8m and Tokyo Cement non-voting with Rs. 21.3m. Most active counters the day were Touchwood Investments, Hatton National Bank non-voting and Sampath Bank.

Notable gainers for the day were Nation Lanka Finance warrant 21 up by 6.3% to close at Rs. 1.70, Free Lanka Capital Holdings up by 4.0% to close at Rs. 2.60 and Panasian Power up by 3.7% to close at Rs. 2.80.

Notable losers for the day were Touchwood Investments down by 11.5% to close at Rs. 5.40, Dankotuwa Porcelain down by 3.2% to close at Rs. 15.00 and Citrus leisure warrant 19 down by 3.1% to close at Rs. 3.10.

Cash map for today was 51.48%. Foreign participation was 23% of total market turnover whilst net foreign buying was Rs. 94m.