Stocks to watch on the Australian stock exchange on Thursday:
ARP – ARB CORPORATION LTD – up 38 cents at $7.74
Shares in ARB Corporation surged by six per cent after the company posted a 16 per cent rise in full year profit, and saying the outlook for the current year was positive.
BTA – BIOTA HOLDINGS LTD – steady at 89 cents
Biotech Biota Holdings says it is focusing on drug development programs that will generate a commercial return, after reporting an annual net loss of $28.1 million.
BLD – BORAL LTD – down 19 cents, or 4.9 per cent, at $3.69
Boral’s chief executive has defended the $530 million price the building materials company paid to buy the other half of its Asian plasterboard joint venture.
BXB – BRAMBLES LTD – up 29 cents at $6.93
Shares in Brambles soared after the company announced plans to offload its information management subsidiary, Recall.
CSL – CSL LTD – down 79 cents at $29.07
CSL’s full year profit has declined 10.7 per cent as the blood products maker was hit by unfavourable movements in the Australian dollar.
DXS – DEXUS PROPERTY GROUP – up three cents at 82 cents
Improving property market conditions have led Dexus Property Group to forecast a 3.4 per cent rise in earnings for 2011/12 after posting robust net profit.
FBU – FLETCHER BUILDING LTD – up 10 cents at $6.23
Fletcher Building reported a four per cent rise in full year profit to $A226.61 million, with the results including three months of operating earnings from Crane Group, bought during the year.
FGE – FORGE GROUP LTD – up 30 cents at $5.40
Shares in Forge Group surged almost six per cent after the holding company posted a 32 per cent rise in full year profit.
FGL – FOSTER’S GROUP LTD – up three cents at $4.96
International beverages giant SABMiller plc has resumed its fight for Foster’s, making a formal conditional takeover offer at $4.90 per share.
MRM – MERMAID MARINE AUSTRALIA LTD – up 20 cents at $3.14
Mermaid Marine says it is profiting from its role as a service provider to the booming offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry.
MCC – MACARTHUR COAL LTD – down three cents at $15.35
Macarthur Coal has told shareholders to take no action over Peabody Energy and ArcelorMittal’s joint $4.7 billion takeover bid.
ORI – ORICA LTD – down 10 cents at $24.15
The company behind the Newcastle chemical leak says it regrets the “very serious” incident and will undertake a full investigation.
QAN – QANTAS AIRWAYS LTD – up five cents at $1.575
Qantas boss Alan Joyce says the airline faces ruin unless it creates ventures overseas, while Australian unions have stepped up calls for the government to stop Qantas jobs going offshore.
SKC – SKY CITY ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LTD – up seven cents at $2.83
Casino operator Sky City Entertainment Group reported a four per cent rise in underlying full year profit to $A104.33 million, with gaming machine revenue in Auckland returning to levels last seen before the global financial crisis.
SMX – SMS MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY LTD – up 34 cents at $6.09
SMS Management & Technology has posted a seven per cent increase in full year net profit, and says it expects further growth over the current financial year.
TRS – THE REJECT SHOP LTD – down six cents at $10.05
The Reject Shop’s full year profits have fallen 30.8 per cent after a tough year with poor seasonal performance in November and December and the impact of the summer’s natural disasters.
WDC – WESTFIELD GROUP – up six cents at $8.20
WRT – WESTFIELD RETAIL TRUST – up one cent at $2.46
Shopping centre owner Westfield Group says it is looking beyond the current malaise in retail spending, pinning its hopes on its forays into Italy and Brazil while the outlook for its US operations remains subdued.
WPL – WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LTD – up 44 cents at $37.76
Woodside Petroleum says full-year production remains on track and talks with other gas owners about buying volumes to underpin an expansion of its Pluto project were “active and maturing”.
