This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on October 12 - 18, 2015.

Notable filings

Between Sept 30 and Oct 2, notable shareholding changes in companies listed on Bursa Malaysia included that at Eco World Development Group Bhd (fundamental: 0.90; valuation: 0.85), where controlling shareholder Eco World Development Holdings Sdn Bhd sold 55.2 million shares or a 2.33% stake through off-market deals on Sept 28 and 29.

Eco World Development Holdings still holds 550.9 million shares or 23.3% equity interest in the property group after the transactions.

Over at APFT Bhd, Datuk Seri Muhammad Syafiq Baljit Abdullah emerged as a substantial shareholder after he bought 36.03 million shares or an 8.45% stake in the company on the market on Sept 25 and 29.

Syafiq snapped up an additional 9.03 million shares on Sept 30, raising his interest to 10.57%.

Interestingly, the loss-making company’s share price has been rather resilient despite the selldown in the third quarter of the year. The stock has been on a steady climb since March, rising from 12 sen to a high of 23.5 sen in August. It closed at 20.5 sen last Thursday.

APFT (fundamental: 0, valuation: 0.20) registered a bigger net loss of RM22.5 million in its financial year ended March 31, 2015, compared with RM19.66 million the year before.

ES Ceramics Technology Bhd (fundamental: 0.80; valuation: 2.55), whose share price has been on an upward trend so far this year, saw its substantial shareholder Choy Swee Lan dispose of 4.5 million shares or a 2.19% stake on the market on Sept 29 and 30. Choy is left with 3.1 million shares after the sales.

ES Ceramics Technology’s share price has increased from 18 sen in January to a multiple-year high of 36 sen in August. The stock closed at 34.5 sen last Thursday.

Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (Diperbadankan) acquired 2.21 million shares in SCGM Bhd on Sept 22 and 23, raising the retirement fund’s stake to 7.35% or 8.82 million shares.

SCGM’s net profit jumped 37.8% to RM4.88 million in its first financial quarter ended July 31, from the previous corresponding quarter. Revenue rose to RM29.6 million from RM27.27 million in the previous corresponding period.

Over at UEM Sunrise Bhd, Lembaga Tabung Haji acquired 67.69 million shares or a 1.49% stake in the property company, which is known as the largest landowner in Johor, between Sept 11 and 30. The pilgrim fund’s equity interest rose to 6.74% or 306.11 million shares.

UEM Sunrise (fundamental: 2.60; valuation: 1.50) also saw the Employees Provident Fund dispose of three million shares on Sept 28. The property stock, which was bashed down badly, has rebounded from a historical low of 79 sen in late August to a high of RM1.25 on Sept 29. It closed at RM1.16 last Thursday.

Notable movements

The share prices of China-based companies Multi Sports Holdings Ltd (fundamental: 1.50; valuation: 1.30) and China Automobile Parts Holdings Ltd (fundamental: 1.50; valuation: 1.95) have slipped and bounced back.

Multi Sports’ share price jumped 61% to 10.5 sen between Sept 1 and Oct 7.

The sports shoe maker’s substantial shareholder, Erwin Selvarajah Peter Selvarajah, bought an additional 16.6 million shares or a 3.21% stake on Sept 23 and 28.

Multi Sports posted a net profit of RM71,000 for the six months ended June 30, a big contrast to the RM19.35 million it raked in in the previous corresponding period.

China Automobile Part (BVI) Co Ltd, UK, sold 40 million shares or a 3.44% stake in China Automobile Parts Holdings on Sept 14 and ceased to be a substantial shareholder.

China Automobile Parts Holdings’ share price has plunged from 26.3 sen in May to 11.5 sen on Sept 28. It rebounded to close at 14 sen last Thursday.

Note: The Edge Research’s fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations. Visit www.theedgemarkets.com for more details on a company’s financial dashboard.

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