The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) indices were mixed today. The Tel Aviv 25 index fell 0.87% to 462.98 points, the Tel Aviv 100 fell 0.84% to 491.55 points, but the Tel-Tech rose 0.12% to 363.97 points. Turnover was NIS 395.6 million.
Today was day of profit-taking on the TASE today. After the TASE indices reached year-long high points yesterday, the market today retreated during most of the session, with the lead indices down over 1.2% by the afternoon.
The trend reversed in late afternoon trading, and the indices recovered much of their earlier losses, apparently thanks to buy orders from fund managers and lively action by Tel Aviv 25 players.
Buying Materna
Most of the day's attention was on Materna baby formula maker Maabarot Products (TASE:MABR). No one cared about this company before yesterday. "If you wanted to sell Maabarot shares a week ago, you'd have been stuck with them for a long time," a trader told me. "Today, you can sell them in seconds."
Since the Remedia scandal erupted yesterday, shares of its competitor Maabarot have bee a hot item on the TASE. The share jumped 40.7% yesterday on a NIS 1.5 million turnover, and today's performance was even more impressive: it rose another 38.8% on a huge NIS 9 million turnover.
Maabarot has only NIS 7 million in floating capital at its current market cap, after the rise in the past two days. This means that some traders resold shares several times today for the share to record its highest-ever turnover on a volatile, action-filled day.
Agis Industries (TASE:AGIS) rose 3.2% on a NIS 37 million turnover, 4.5 times its daily average and the session's largest turnover.
Agis announced this morning that Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its Mupirocin ointment. Mupirocin is the generic version of GlaxoSmithKline's (NYSE; LSE:GSK) Bactroban ointment for skin infections.
Profit-taking at the chemical companies
The TASE's two largest chemical companies - Israel Chemicals (TASE:CLIM) and MA Industries (TASE:MAIN) - are due to publish their third quarter financial reports on Wednesday. Nessuah Zannex analyst Haim Israel published his forecasts for the two companies today.
He predicts that Israel Chemicals's third quarter profit will shrink to $28.6 million, a $1 million less than in the corresponding quarter last year, due to higher fuel prices, especially for shipping. He predicts that MA Industries' net profit will soar 47.7% to $19.9 million, mostly thanks the products line it purchased from Bayer (NYSE:BAY; LSE:BYR; XETRA:BAYG), which are expected to contribute to MA Industries anticipated 19.3% increase in revenue to $259.3 million in 2003.
MA Industries fell 2.3% today in rather lively trading, while Israel Chemicals fell 0.5% after a volatile session.
Bezeq (TASE:BZEQ) also attracted interest today. Bezeq was under heavy pressure last Thursday, following assessments that the state will publish a tender to sell $100 million worth of Bezeq share to foreign concerns.
But Bezeq has had to defer the publication of its third quarter financial report because of a dispute with its workers, and it is still unclear if the company will have to record an allowance in its report. No tender was therefore published, allowing the share to correct its drop. Bezeq rose 1.7% yesterday and edged up another 0.1% today in lively trading, despite the market's decline.
I will conclude with Formula Vision Technologies (TASE:FVT), which is going strong. The market is beginning to notice this company following good announcements by its portfolio companies and expectations that the high-tech recovery will help the sector in general and this company in particular.
Formula Vision rose for the sixth continuous day today, adding another 10% to complete a 62% rise in five sessions, and over 300% since early September.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on November 10, 2003