Published October 28, 2008

Prominent firms' Q3 results out this week

Top of the list is Cosco which will release its report card on Thursday

By OH BOON PING

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THE third quarter corporate results season continues this week with a number of high-profile companies expected to turn in their Q3 report cards.

What will they show? Analysts slash their target prices for Cosco (above), while UOB (next) will be the first local bank to report its Q3 results

Top of the list is Chinese shipbuilder Cosco Corp which is scheduled to release its financial results on Thursday.

The firm was hit by news of its Norwegian client MPF Corp filing for bankruptcy, amid growing fears that the credit crisis could squeeze demand for new shipbuilding and lead to order cancellations. Accordingly, analysts have slashed their target prices for the stock by as much as 50 per cent.

And on Thursday, both analysts and investors alike will be watching out for signs of weakness in its order books, before deciding if the stock is worth holding in the short to medium term.

Next in line is United Overseas Bank (UOB) - the first local bank to report its Q3 performance this season.

To be sure, the banking sector is at the epicentre of the credit tsunami, but UOB's third quarter financial results might not be a good indication of the recessionary impact on the banking sector, according to analysts.

Some pointed out that loans growth is still positive, even though most are bracing for more write-downs and nasty numbers coming from the banks' treasury activities.

Not surprisingly, the three banks have seen their share prices hammered since 158-year-old Lehman filed for bankruptcy protection, and all three lost more than 40 per cent of their value in the year-to-date.

Joining UOB in reporting its results on Friday is property giant CapitaLand. Analysts expect the stock to register weak sales and average selling prices (ASPs), and face the risk of provisions.

Market watchers also pointed out that most developers here, which reflects investment properties at cost, may start chalking up revaluation losses against investment properties and especially, lower sales from overseas.

At developer GuocoLand, group revenue fell 20 per cent to $153.1 million from a year ago due mainly to lower revenue recognised from development projects in China.

Other prominent stocks that will disclose their performance in the next two weeks include OCBC, DBS, SembCorp Marine and ST Engineering.