The MSE Equity Price Index erased most of last Friday’s upsurge as it retracted by 0.65% to 4,817.867 points. The decline was largely driven by the drops in IHI, HSBC and MIA albeit on relatively light volumes. On the other hand, the majority of today’s activity took place in BMIT and RS2 both of which ended the day unchanged.
BMIT Technologies plc maintained the €0.53 level on heightened activity totalling 295,647 shares having a market value of €0.16 million.
Last Thursday, BMIT published its maiden interim financial statements following the IPO which took place in January 2019. The company reported higher revenues but its performance was dented due to higher costs. BMIT ended the first half of the financial year with a cash balance €2.8 million compared to €0.67 million as at the end of 2018.
Similarly, RS2 Software plc retained the €1.95 level after opening at a low of €1.92 (-1.5%). A total of 75,196 shares changed hands. The company has not yet announced the date of the publication of the interim financial statements due by the end of August.
A single deal of 9,000 shares left the equity of Medserv plc at the €1.18 level. The oil and gas logistics company is due to publish its interim financial results on 30 August.
PG plc traded flat at the €1.65 level on volumes totalling 5,000 shares.
Low trading activity also took place in the equities of Main Street Complex plc and Santumas Shareholdings plc which ended unchanged at €0.61 and €1.64 respectively.
GO plc eased by 0.4% to the €4.54 level albeit on trivial volumes. Last Friday, GO published its 2019 interim results revealing a 15.5% drop in pre-tax profitability to €12.9 million largely reflecting one-off transactions. In their commentary, the directors explained that the company remains committed to a strategic investment programme aimed at driving revenue growth in both Malta and Cyprus.
International Hotel Investments plc moved back to the €0.76 level (-3.8%) across 23,577 shares. IHI has not yet announced the date of the publication of the interim financial statements due by the end of August.
HSBC Bank Malta plc lost 2.6% to a fresh over fifteen-year low of €1.49 across 13,328 shares. Shareholders as at close of trading tomorrow will receive a net interim dividend of €0.0111 per share. The dividend is payable on 18 September.
Malta International Airport plc also trended in negative territory today with a drop of 1.3% back to the €7.50 level on 3,157 shares. Last Thursday, MIA announced new record traffic results for the month of July, bringing the total number of passenger movements since the start of the year to over 4.05 million, representing a 5.9% increase over the same period last year.
Three deals totalling 6,040 shares forced the equity of MIDI plc to move 2.1% lower to the €0.70 level. MIDI is scheduled to publish its 2019 interim results on 21 August.
Lombard Bank Malta plc drifted 0.9% lower to the €2.28 level across 4,386 shares whilst Bank of Valletta plc rebounded by 1.4% to regain the €1.07 level on activity of 68,681 shares. Lombard is due to publish its interim financial statements on 21 August.
Simonds Farsons Cisk plc and Mapfre Middlesea plc gained 1% and 2% to €10.10 and €2.06 respectively on low volumes.
The Board of Directors of Malta Properties Company plc was scheduled to meet today to consider and approve the company’s interim financial statements for the six-month period ended 30 June 2019. The equity remained inactive today.
The RF MGS Index opened the week slightly lower as it eased by 0.07% to 1,167.350 points. All prices of Malta Government Stocks trended in negative territory following the significant gains registered in recent weeks. Meanwhile, international financial markets continued to be largely dominated by global trade worries, whilst in Italy, a senior member of the Northern League opined that the party may push to increase the country’s fiscal deficit to 2.8% of GDP in order to avoid hiking the value-added tax.