A sharp decline in top stock Fisher & Paykel Healthcare made for a negative day on the New Zealand sharemarket on Thursday.
The benchmark S&P/NZX50 Index closed down 0.8 per cent, or 104.10 points, at 12,243.34. The index spent much of Wednesday in negative territory before flipping into the black just before the close.
Hamilton Hindin Greene director Grant Williamson said it was a pretty soggy day on the market.
The big news today was the Fisher & Paykel Healthcare result. Its our largest listed company, it disappointed investors, we saw a pretty aggressive sell-off in share price, Williamson said.
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The medical equipment manufacturer said it will distribute $29 million in bonuses to staff after posting a record $524m full year profit after tax, up 82 per cent on the previous year.
Shares in Fisher & Paykel Healthcare closed down 5 per cent at $29.79, recovering from the session low of $27.81.
The sell-down in Fisher & Paykel Healthcare weighed on the NZ market.
The company has experienced worldwide demand for its breathing devices during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Its been one of our best performing stocks during Covid, its had a great run. Covid boosted its sales significantly, said Williamson.
However, the lack of clarity around the companys outlook and the lack of earnings guidance created a bit of uncertainty in investors minds, he said.
Fisher & Paykel Healthcare chief executive Lewis Gradon said that with ongoing uncertainties around vaccinations, lockdowns, Covid-19 variants, localised waves and return to stable hospitalisation rates around the world, the company was not providing guidance for the 2022 financial year.
Among other top stocks, A2 Milk was down 1.4 per cent at $5.52, Fletcher Building rose a further 0.8 per cent to $7.50 after lifting its annual profit guidance on Wednesday, and Mainfreight rose 3.6 per cent to $75.88 after its record annual profit
Retirement sector stocks under pressure, amid further talk of a slowdown in housing price rises. Ryman Healthcare lost 3.2 per cent to $13.06.
Across the Tasman, Australias benchmark S&P/ASX200 Index rose 0.22 per cent, or 15.8 points, to 7108.3 in afternoon trading.
Earlier on Wall Street, the S&P 500 ended just under 0.2 per cent higher, up 7.86 points to 4195.99, after wavering between small gains and losses.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which turned 125 years old Wednesday, gained less than 0.1 per cent to 34,323.05. The tech-heavy Nasdaq added 0.6 per cent to 13,738.
The S&P 500 hit an all-time high on May 7, but then fell for two straight weeks heading into this week. The index is on track for a gain this week of about 1 per cent.
– With AP
