Market: big NZI sales

Press, 25 July 1986, Page 10

Market: big NZI sales

Big sales of NZI shares pushed the turnover on the Stock Exchange yesterday to 16.1 million shares, worth 534.5 M. In all, B.IM NZI shares traded. It is believed that a considerable portion of these may have been an Institutional switch amid heavy buying, said to have been friendly to NZI. The change of institutional owernship of a large,block of the shares Is said to be unrelated to the other activity in NZI shares. There have been rumours that NZI may be restructured by another large company shortly. NZI ended the day 3c firmer at 203.

The market was again bullish, the Barclays industrial index pushing 7.82 points higher on Wednesday’s record high. Rises outnumbered falls, 80-75.

Most leading industrial shares were well supported, and second-line companies were also generally firm, brokers said.

Brierley Investments closed 7c down on Wednesday. Jiome in the market suggested this was because of arbitrage trading between Australia and New Zealand. This is given credence by the dramatic fall in the Australian dollar yesterday and the comparative strength of the New Zealand currency. But Brierley shares have been falling slightly all week in New Zealand. .. Investors were now showing nervousness about some of the prlce-to-earnings ratios of second-line shares,

said Mr Brian Kreft, of Forsyth, Barr, and Company, the Dunedin brokers.

This contrasted with the relative firmness of issues such as Fletcher’s.

Other factors apparent in the market were pre-Budget qualms, and a technical correction to the bull market, which had continued for some weeks.

The jump in price by Kupe Investments (11c) was singled out by Mr Nigel Kerr, a market operator with the Timaru broker, Satterthwaite and Company.

Southern Petroleum was an issue worth watching, said Mr Kerr. Investors would do well to watch the reports of tests on its latest well, which should reveal whether it had struck significant oil potential. The market had not liked the call made on the com-

pan/s contributing shares, but this call could be interpreted as the company deciding it needed cash to develop a prospect. Mr Kerr suggested there was “something in the wind” for Brierley’s with its 7c fall yesterday. “I wouldn’t be surpsied to see it as low as 550 c.”

Price moves yesterday included: Trans-Ashburton fell 30c to 520.

Cromwell Corp rose 50c to 1400, coinciding with an announcement that Unity Group had the Commerce Commission’s approval to acquire 100 per cent of the property Investor. The goat breeder, Cashmere Pacific, was 30c higher at 205, and Pacer Pacific gained 40c to 760. Rainbow Corp fell 80c to 610, after having its take-

over bids for Rothmans Industries, Ltd, and Dominion Breweries, Ltd, stalled.

L. D. Nathan added 25c to 630 and its merger partner, Mace, rose 50c to 1200, while the Wellington based investment company, Renouf Corp, gained 25c to 69®.

In beer stocks, Lion was up 15c to 600 and Dominion Breweries 10c higher at 540.

Carter Holt rose 12c to 400, and Wilson and Horton, which held its annual general meeting on Wednesday, rose 5c to 675.

N.Z. Forest Products added 7c to 245, and Wattle Industries was 3c higher at 378.

Jarden and Company reported it purchased 145,000 FTC shares out of a total of 648,370 traded on-market yesterday, with the retailer ending unchanged at 211 c.