Market close: Heavyweight stocks pull index higher

Fisher and Paykel Healthcare was up 57c or 2.36 per cent to $24.75. Photo / Supplied

Three heavyweight stocks - Fisher and Paykel Healthcare, Ebos and Mainfreight - did the heavy lifting and hauled the New Zealand sharemarket to its fourth successive daily gain.

After an early-morning dip, the S&P/NZX 50 Index traded strongly for the rest of the day and closed at 11,881, up 69.76 points or 0.59 per cent. The index hit an intraday low of 11,776.55.

In an even spread, there were 61 gainers and 62 decliners over the whole market on light volume of 27.57 million share transactions worth $98.16 million.

Matt Goodson, managing director of Salt Funds Management, said the market is still typically quiet at this time of the year in terms of turnover, with some investors still on holiday and others looking ahead to the company results season next month.

He said Ebos continues to grind higher on talk that it will be included in the MSCI World Index following the quarterly review at the end of February. Ebos had just been added to the MSCI Small Cap Index and “the passive investment funds are pre-positioning and having to buy Ebos at any price.”

Goodson said in Australia JB Hi-Fi and Supercheap Auto – they have operations in New Zealand – have reported strong sales and retail outcomes there are not looking too bad.

“It’s a different kettle of fish in New Zealand with The Warehouse having sounded a warning and the latest quarterly survey of business opinion coming in at a record low.

“There’s been a rally around the world this month and Bitcoin has risen sharply. We’ve seen some pretty speculative activity at the margins on light volumes,” Goodson said.

Bitcoin has gone above US$21,000 ($32,787) for the first time in two months and has increased 26 per cent this month. Bitcoin, however, is still far from its high of US$68,990 ($107,713).

The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research’s quarterly survey of business opinion, conducted between November 28 and January 9, showed 73 per cent of businesses believed general economic conditions were deteriorating. This was the weakest reading in the survey’s 50-year history.

The Reserve Bank’s aggressive approach to hiking interest rates to tame inflation had dampened consumer and business spending.

Ebos Group continued to steam ahead, increasing 32c to a new high of $46.30. Ebos’ rise began in mid-October when its share price sat at $35.65.

Fisher and Paykel Healthcare was up 57c or 2.36 per cent to $24.75 on trade worth $15.9m; and Mainfreight rebounded $2.39 or 3.53 per cent to $70.

In the energy sector, Mercury gained 12c or 2.09 per cent to $5.86; and Manawa was up 4c to $5.11. Infratil gained 12c to $8.77.

Freightways collected 12c to $9.80; Summerset Group was up 15c to $9.25; Ryman Healthcare gained 6c to $5.56; Precinct Properties increased 4c or 3.2 per cent to $1.29; Vulcan Steel added 18c or 1.91 per cent to $9.59; and Tower rose 3.5c or 5.04 per cent to 73c.

Restaurant Brands collected 10c or 1.79 per cent to $5.70; NZME was up 2c to $1.18; Smartpay Holdings increased 2.5c or 2.02 per cent; Burger Fuel gained 1.5c or 5.45 per cent to 29c; Radius Residential Care added 1c or 3.33 per cent to 31c; and Move Logistics was up 2c or 2.94 per cent to $1.05.

KMD Brands gained 1c to $1.06 after South African investment manager Allan Gray Group disclosed it has increased its shareholding to 7.18 per cent, from 6.08 per cent.

New Zealand Oil & Gas, up 0.005c to 42c, has taken a 25 per cent interest in listed Triangle Energy’s northern Perth Basin permits, with three exploration wells to be drilled next year.

Synlait Milk shed 7c or 1.97 per cent to $3.48; Port of Tauranga was down 9c to $6.35; SkyCity Entertainment decreased 5c or 1.94 per cent to $2.53; Turners Automotive declined 6c or 1.89 per cent to $3.12; and The Colonial Motor Company was down 12c to $9.38.

Other decliners were Rakon down 3c or 2.86 per cent to $1.02; Pacific Edge giving up 2c or 3.85 per cent to 50c; MHM Automation decreasing 5c or 5.56 per cent to 85c; PaySauce shedding 1.5c or 5.08 per cent to 28c; and Stride Property down 3c or 2.07 per cent to $1.42.

Transport and logistics software firm TradeWindow fell 4c or 8 per cent to 46c after announcing a $20m capital raising at 45c a share. A shareholders meeting will be held on January 31 to approve the share offer.

Cooks Coffee, unchanged at 36.5c, told the market that sales in the UK increased 41 per cent and in Ireland 91 per cent for the year ending December. Cooks has 85 Esquires and Triple Two sites and is planning to open seven more by the end of March.