What to buy (and avoid) as the market grinds towards a recovery

SINGAPORE (March 9): The basket of shares under Maybank Kim Eng’s coverage for the quarter ending December 2016 performed poorly, but the brokerage believes selective stock-picking can still yield decent returns this year.

In a Thursday report, analyst Neel Sinha says revenues for stocks under Maybank’s coverage fell for the fifth straight quarter by 2%, EBITDA fell  8% while core profit fell 7%. Overall margins were also down both y-o-y and q-o-q especially with banks and telcos adding to the bleak outlook.

In comparison, the benchmark Straits Times Index has fared better with negative 4% core profit decline and a modest 3% growth if the Jardine group of companies were excluded.

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