This article first appeared in Capital, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on October 5 - October 11, 2015.

Notable filings

Between Sept 21 and 25, notable shareholding changes in companies listed on Bursa Malaysia included the acquisition of a 1.79% stake in packaging company Ire-Tex Corp Bhd by Soo Tee Wei.

An executive director of Ire-Tex (fundamental: 0.35; valuation: 0.90), Soo raised his stake in the company to 3.68% after buying 2.36 million shares on Sept 17 at 27 sen apiece or RM637,983 in total. It is worth noting that 1.9 million shares changed hands in a single direct deal on Sept 17 at 27 sen apiece, within the 27 sen to 28 sen that the stock had fetched on the open market that day. Closing at 26 sen last Wednesday, the stock has fallen 35% from its recent high of 40 sen on June 22.

On June 10, Ire-Tex appointed Ferrier Hodgson MH Sdn Bhd to conduct an investigative audit on two transactions made between its unit, Zoomic Automation (M) Sdn Bhd, and several suppliers that led to external auditor UHY Chartered Accountants making a qualified opinion on Ire-Tex’s FY2014 financial statements. The review, initially expected to be concluded by mid-September, was delayed because certain documents were not made available within the expected time frame. 

Over at Halex Holdings Bhd, the agrochemicals distributor saw Farmcochem Sdn Bhd dispose of about 1.5 million of its shares or 1.42% equity interest on Sept 14 and 15. The disposals reduced Farmcochem’s stake in Halex (fundamental: 1.55; valuation: 1.10) to 5.16%. 

Halex’s shares traded between 54.5 sen and 71 sen on those two days before closing at 62.5 sen on Sept 15, nearly double its 34 sen close on Sept 10. The share price spike followed a Sept 14 statement that the company was looking to buy a 51% stake in VW Win Holdings Plc, which holds a lottery licence in Cambodia that is valid until June 26 next year and is renewable every year. A purchase consideration has not been determined, pending due diligence.

Meanwhile, Lembaga Tabung Haji bought six million shares in Cypark Resources Bhd between Sept 17 and 25, increasing its stake in the renewable energy services provider by 2.5% to 10.2%. The acquisition follows a private placement by Cypark (fundamental: 1.15; valuation: 1.40) to its CEO, Datuk Daud Ahmad, who acquired 19.78 million shares or 8.19% equity interest on Sept 7 at RM1.31 apiece, raising his holdings to 14.7%. 

Elsewhere, Permanis Sdn Bhd president and CEO Erwin Selvarajah acquired 3.27 million shares or a 0.63% stake in China-based sports shoes sole maker Multi Sports Holdings Ltd (fundamental: 1.30; valuation: 1.50) on Sept 18. As at last Wednesday, Selvarajah had accumulated another 25.9 million shares or a 4.9% stake, raising his shareholding to 9.97%. Selvarajah is the former CEO of CI Holdings Bhd, which owned Permanis before the bottling company was sold to Asahi Group Holdings for RM820 million in 2011.

Notable movements

Terence Tea Yeok Kian, executive chairman of EG Industries Bhd (fundamental: 0.95; valuation: 1.70), disposed of 350,000 shares or a 0.46% stake in the electronic manufacturing services provider on Sept 21 at 61 sen apiece. Closing at 64.5 sen last Monday, the stock rebounded 31.6% from its recent low of 49 sen on Aug 26. It closed at 61 sen last Wednesday.

Meanwhile, shares of SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd (fundamental: 0.65; valuation: 1.40) closed at RM1.88 last Wednesday, 27.9% higher than RM1.47 on Aug 25, but slipping 6.9% from their recent high of RM2.02 on Sept 18.

Filings show that the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) disposed of 19.05 million shares in SapuraKencana between Sept 15 and 21. The EPF pared down its stake in the company to 14.43% as at Sept 23 from 15.27% at end-August. Net profit at the oil and gas services provider more than halved to RM364.78 million in the first half of financial year ending Dec 31, 2015, compared with RM955.22 million in the previous corresponding period.

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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