NZ shares rise as nationwide lockdown ends

New Zealand shares took another step higher, led by stocks that are likely to benefit from the end of lockdown in much of the country.

Tuesday, September 7th 2021, 6:24PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index rose 21.96 points, or 0.2%, to 13321.99 – now up almost 5% this month and down just 0.3% this year. Turnover was $143 million.

Kathmandu led the gains on the index, rallying 4.3% to $1.47, as investors picked retail stocks that would benefit when the national lockdown ends on Tuesday night.

Analysts from Forsyth Barr tried to quantify which stocks were most affected by the changing alert levels, ultimately picking Kathmandu as one of the key beneficiaries.

The government today agreed to allow some building product manufacturing to resume at level 4, which will likely benefit Fletcher as it does some manufacturing in Auckland.

The analysts rated the revenue impact of each alert level on a scale of 0 to 10, with Kathmandu scoring an 8 at level three and just a 2 at level two.

The Warehouse Group was another beneficiary the analysts singled out, it was up 1.6% to $3.86, while retail peer Briscoe Group climbed 1.5% to $6.81.

Casino operator SkyCity was given the worst possible score at both alert level three and four but drops to a 6 with some of the country at alert level two from Wednesday.

Its share price was up 1.5% at $3.39 today, however, it should be noted that 70% of the group’s revenue comes from Auckland which remains at level four.

Fletcher Building had a similar jump, up 1.5% at $7.48, although the research note said the drop from level four to level three was much more significant for the construction firm.

Ryman Healthcare declined 1.2% to $15.61, its rating drops from a 5 during lockdown to zero at level two – although the effect is limited since the business is fairly Auckland-centric.

The retirement village operator today appointed Richard Umbers, a former Progressive Enterprises managing director, as its new chief executive to succeed Gordon MacLeod from Oct 25.

Travel stocks had no reason to celebrate, scoring between 7 and 8 on the Forsyth Barr scale even at level two and between 9 and 10 at the higher levels.

Tourism Holdings fell 1.7% to $2.38, Air New Zealand dropped 0.6% to $1.57, and Auckland Airport edged up 0.1% to $7.33.

Sky TV had the biggest fall, down 2.3% at 21 cents, as investors took some profit after a significant rally from 16 cents.

Tags: Market Close