Stocks to watch: Wilmar, Sembcorp, Ascendas Reit, FLCT, StarHub

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Friday (Aug 5):

Wilmar International : The agribusiness group reported a 55.1 per cent jump in net profit for its first half ended June, on the back of improved performance across all key business segments and higher contributions from associates and joint ventures. Net profit for the 6-month period rose to US$1.2 billion from US$750.9 million a year ago, the company said on Thursday. Wilmar rose 0.5 per cent or S$0.02 on Thursday to close at S$4.13 before the results.

Sembcorp Industries : The multi-faceted business group on Friday posted a net profit surge of S$490 million for the half year ended Jun 30, compared with S$46 million a year ago, on higher contributions from its renewables and conventional energy segment. H1 turnover also rose 45 per cent to S$4.76 billion from S$3.29 billion previously. Sembcorp’s shares ended Thursday 0.3 per cent or S$0.01 lower at S$3.01.