BETWEEN May 6 and 12, a total of 581.86 million shares worth RM1.07 billion changed hands off market in blocks of at least 500,000 shares.

Among the notable transactions, Central Industrial Corp Bhd (fundamental: 1.8; valuation: 1.2) saw 14.65 million shares or just under 32% equity interest traded off market on May 6 for a total of RM13.19 million. The shares changed hands in three direct deals at 90 sen apiece. The industrial tape and label maker was not traded on the open market that day. The seller is likely Amanahraya Trustees Bhd-Skim Amanah Saham Bumiputera, which, filings show, disposed of 14.65 million shares that day to three individuals who emerged as substantial shareholders in Central Industrial.

The trio are Mokhtar Abdullah (who bought 6.41 million shares or a 14% stake), Gan Lock Yong (4.58 million shares or a 10% stake) and Tan Ban Aik (3.66 million shares or an 8% stake). It is worth noting that Gan, 65, is an executive director of GPA Holdings Bhd, an automotive battery manufacturer owned by Tan Sri Robert Tan Hua Choon. Central Industrial closed at 88.5 sen last Wednesday, down 11.5 sen or 11.5% year to date.

Also on May 6, Asia Poly Holdings Bhd (fundamental: 0.55; valuation: 0.5) saw a 16% stake or 14 million shares change hands in four direct deals for a total of RM6.3 million. Ten million shares were sold for 43 sen apiece and the rest for 50 sen apiece, representing a 2.9% to 16.5% discount to the open market price of 51.5 sen. According to filings, CEO Teoh Cheng Chuan was the seller of the block of 10 million shares, thus halving his stake to 11.4%.

One of the largest domestic suppliers of A-Cast branded cast acrylic sheets, Asia Poly was picked by The Edge Research as a stock with momentum last month. The stock doubled from 24.5 sen early last month to 53 sen on May 6. Though it closed at 51.5 sen last Wednesday, it was still up 120% YTD. Activity picked up following the cessation of Tan Sri Lim Tong Yong as Asia Poly’s single largest shareholder after he sold a 27.6% stake to Datuk Yeo Boon Leong on April 13.

Also worth noting are the 14.64 million shares of Stemlife Bhd (fundamental: 1.95; valuation: 0.9) that changed hands in six direct deals off market on May 6. The trades, representing 5.9% of the company’s share base, were done at 40 sen apiece or RM5.85 million in total. This was at an 8% discount to the open market price of 43.5 sen at the time. At press time, the parties involved in the transactions were not known. Filings show the UK-based Citigroup Global Markets Ltd emerged as Stemlife’s substantial shareholder after buying a 6.42% stake in the stem-cell banking company on the open market on May 6.

On May 12, household appliance distributor Milux Corp Bhd (fundamental: 1.65; valuation: 0.3) saw 4.66 million shares or an 8.6% stake cross in 10 direct deals off market for RM5.59 million in total. The shares changed hands at RM1.20 apiece, which was at an 8.1% to 10.1% premium to the RM1.09 to RM1.11 they fetched on the open market at the time. At the time of writing, the buyer and seller were not known.

Over at K&N Kenanga Holdings Bhd (fundamental: 1.8; valuation: 1.65), about 55.98 million shares or a 7.65% stake changed hands at a discount to the open market price for RM36.38 million in total or 65 sen apiece on May 7 and 11. The seller of 36.51 million shares via direct trades on May 7 was Deutsche Asia-Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd, which saw its stake reduced to 64.7 million shares or an 8.85%.

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.

This article first appeared in Capital, The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on May 18 - 24, 2015.

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