KEY POINTS:
High-profile stocks SkyCity Entertainment, The Warehouse Group and Michael Hill International have started 2008 with their share value in reverse.
But the falls in the stock prices are for distinct reasons.
Casino company SkyCity closed yesterday at $4.26, down 7c after falling 9c on Tuesday. Yesterday's closing price was down 29c on the $4.55 at the close of business on Friday.
Retailer The Warehouse Group closed yesterday at $5.57, down 3c, having traded as low as $5.46. It dropped 18c on Tuesday.
The Red Sheds had slipped for four trading days in a row, ending 23c down from $5.80 on Friday.
Michael Hill International - which recently made a 10-for-one share split - closed yesterday at $1.09, down 3c. The jeweller ended 2007 with shares selling for $1.22.
Investor Simon Botherway of Brook Asset Management said the share price for SkyCity indicated that global credit problems were getting worse and it was highly unlikely a takeover offer was coming. He said SkyCity had been unable to sell its cinema division for the price it wanted.
The Warehouse Group was a retail stock in a reasonably substantial economic slowdown and with the Commerce Commission appealing a High Court decision, it could be expected to be volatile, he said.
Rickey Ward of Tyndall Asset Management said the market was looking to the US for an indication on sentiment. In times of uncertainty the value of New Zealand stocks was often affected due to the lack of liquidity.
SkyCity's appointment of a new CEO, Nigel Morrison, with casino experience, was seen as positive but Ward said that had not affected the share price because investors had yet to meet him.
Neither Botherway nor Ward could provide an analysis of the changes at Michael Hill International.
But the company has been on a high after recording the best returns for any NZX company to investors last year.
