Stocks to watch on the Australian stock exchange on Thursday, May 31

AAC – AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURAL COMPANY LTD – down 2.5 cents at $1.17

Cattle producer Australian Agricultural Company has bought the site for its proposed $83 million abattoir in Darwin.

AGK – AGL ENERGY LTD – up eight cents at $15.03

AGL Energy’s $448 million takeover of the Australia’s third largest coal fired power station has received final approval.

CWN – CROWN LTD – down five cents at $8.53

EGP – ECHO ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LTD – down one cent at $4.34

Billionaire James Packer has stepped up his push to gain a foothold in Sydney’s casino market by moving to install former Victorian premier Jeff Kennett on Echo Entertainment Group’s board.

FXJ – FAIRFAX MEDIA LTD – down 0.5 cents at 66.5 cents

Journalists at Fairfax Media have voted to go on strike for 36 hours over the outsourcing of 66 editorial production jobs to New Zealand.

ORG – ORIGIN ENERGY LTD – down six cents at $13.03

Origin Energy has blamed a global over-supply of solar cells for a decision to cancel production of panels in the United States.

PRG – PROGRAMMED MAINTENANCE SERVICES LTD – up eight cents at $2.28

Programmed Maintenance Services almost tripled its profit in the last 12 months due to its exposure to the resources sector, and expects modest earnings growth in the year ahead.

QAN – QANTAS AIRWAYS LTD – down three cents at $1.49

The government should prosecute Qantas for illegally allowing Thai crew to work on domestic Jetstar flights, the transport union says.

TZL – TZ LTD – down 11.5 cents, or 42.59 per cent, at 15.5 cents.

A company chaired by high profile entrepreneur Mark Bouris $15.3 million wiped from its market value after it missed out on a lucrative deal with Australia Post.

VTA – VITERRA INC – up four cents at $15.88

Shareholders have approved the takeover of agribusiness Viterra, which has operations in Australia, by global commodities giant Glencore.

WES – WESFARMERS LTD – down six cents at $28.95

Target wants to shake off its budget image and become a cool brand among the teens and tweens.