Stocks to watch: UOB, Singtel, Parkson Retail Asia, Cordlife 

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Wednesday (Feb 19).

UOB : The lender on Wednesday posted a net profit of S$1.52 billion for the fourth quarter ended December, up 8.6 per cent from S$1.4 billion in the previous corresponding period. This included S$17 million in one-off expenses from UOB’s Citigroup integration costs after taxes, which was 81.9 per cent lower than the S$94 million recorded in the same period the previous year. A higher final dividend of S$0.92 per share for the half-year period, up from S$0.85 the year before was declared. Shares of UOB ended on Tuesday 0.1 per cent or S$0.04 higher at S$38.65, before the announcement.

Singtel : On Wednesday, the telco giant reported that net profit for the third quarter ended Dec 31 climbed 183.4 per cent to S$1.3 billion from S$465 million in the same period the year before. This was mainly attributed to a net exceptional gain of S$639 million, compared to a net exceptional loss of S$94 million in the same period the previous year. Operating revenue rose 1 per cent on year to S$3.6 billion. Shares of Singtel rose 0.3 per cent or S$0.01 to S$3.33 on Tuesday, before the announcement.