CSE survives to close on the up despite profit taking

The Colombo stock market yesterday survived close on the up despite profit taking amidst heightened investor activity though subdued in comparison to the previous two days.

The ASPI closed up 0.1% or 18 points whilst active S&P SL 20 dipped by 0.3% or 11 points. Turnover was Rs. 3.3 billion involving 120 million shares.

Asia Securities said following an initial decline, the indices picked up momentum in the second half of the session on Thursday as investors returned to front-line stocks after a bout of profit-taking. Having dropped to an intra-day low of 10,096 (-80 points), the ASPI regained footing and closed at 10,194 (+18 points) led by price gains in SUN (+5.8%), SCAP (+5.8%), RCL (+3.4%), CFVF (+3.4%), and CALT (+4.0%). 

Turnover was supported by CIC (Rs. 490 million), HAYL (Rs. 193 million), SUN (Rs. 175 million), and CALT (Rs. 170 million). The breadth of the market was positive with 124 price gainers and 73 decliners.

Net foreign inflow was Rs. 42 million.

First Capital said the bourse closed in the green zone at 10,194 and managed to notch a gain of over 18 points amidst a volatile trading session.

The market witnessed selling pressure backed with a profit-taking stance during the morning hours and got reactivated with buying interest during the latter part of the session mainly led by the mid-cap Diversified counters. Retail investor participation was visible on treasury shares after CBSL decided to reduce the Standing Deposit Facility Rate (SDFR) and the Standing Lending Facility Rate (SLFR) of the Central Bank by 200bps to 11.00% and 12.00%, respectively.

Turnover recorded at $ 3.2 billion, 63.8% more than the monthly average turnover of Rs. 2 billion, aided by multiple crossings including JKH, RCL and SUN. Notably, CIC witnessed a stake change of 2.1% through off-board transactions, totaling 6.1 million shares at Rs. 66.

NDB Securities said high net worth and institutional investor participation was noted in CIC Holdings, John Keells Holdings and Royal Ceramics. Mixed interest was observed in Hayleys, Capital Alliance and Sunshine Holdings whilst retail interest was noted in Browns Investments, Softlogic Capital and LOLC Finance.

The Materials sector was the top contributor to the market turnover (due to CIC Holdings) whilst the sector index gained 1.90%. The share price of CIC Holdings increased by Rs. 2.10 to Rs. 70.20.

The Capital Goods sector was the second highest contributor to the market turnover (due to Hayleys and Royal Ceramics) whilst the sector index decreased by 0.73%. The share price of Hayleys edged down 10 cents to close at Rs. 88.80. The share price of Royal Ceramics appreciated by Rs. 1.10 to Rs. 33.10.

Sunshine Holdings and Capital Alliance were also included among the top turnover contributors. The share price of Sunshine Holdings moved up by Rs. 2.70 (5.79%) to Rs. 49.30. The share price of Capital Alliance recorded a gain of Rs. 1.70 (4.00%) to Rs. 44.20.