Stocks to watch: CapitaLand, Ho Bee Land, OUE H-Trust, Perennial, GSH, EC World Reit

THE following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their shares on Wednesday:

CapitaLand: Real estate heavyweight CapitaLand on Wednesday morning posted a 4.2 per cent drop in net profit to S$579.8 million for its second quarter, from S$605.5 million a year ago. This was mainly attributed to one-off transactions costs incurred on the acquisition of Ascendas-Singbridge, which was completed on June 28. Earnings per share for the quarter was 13.9 Singapore cents, down from 14.4 cents for the year-ago period.

Revenue slumped 19.3 per cent to S$1.08 billion for the quarter from S$1.34 billion a year ago, mainly due to lower contributions from the residential trading business. No dividend was declared for the second quarter, same as a year ago, because CapitaLand pays the first and final dividend only. Shares of CapitaLand closed up two cents or 0.578 per cent to S$3.48 on Tuesday.

Ho Bee Land: Share of losses from associates and jointly controlled entities and absence of a fair-value gain dealt a blow to property firm Ho Bee Land's second-quarter earnings. Net profit plunged 79.9 per cent to S$14.4 million from the previous year, as its Shanghai and Zhuhai associates faced accrual of land appreciation tax of S$20.5 million. Revenue rose 21.2 per cent to S$52.6 million from the previous year, helped by contributions from Ropemaker Place, a London investment property which was acquired on June 15 last year. Earnings per share fell to 2.16 Singapore cents from 10.74 Singapore cents in the previous year. Ho Bee shares closed 0.4 per cent, or one Singapore cent lower at S$2.32 on Tuesday before the results were announced.

OUE Hospitality Trust (OUE H-Trust): OUE H-Trust's distribution per stapled security (DPS) fell 9.4 per cent year on year to 1.06 Singapore cents for the second quarter ended June 30. Gross revenue was down 4.4 per cent to S$29.38 million as both the hospitality and retail segments recorded lower revenue, while net property income (NPI) was 4.5 per cent lower at S$25.31 million. Distributable income clocked in at S$19.44 million, falling 8.6 per cent. The DPS is payable on Sept 12. OUE H-Trust - which is seeking a merger with OUE Commercial Reit - will hold its extraordinary general meeting and trust scheme meeting on Aug 14 to seek approval from its stapled security holders. The counter closed at 72.5 Singapore cents on Tuesday, down one cent.

Perennial Real Estate Holdings: Higher finance costs and the absence of a fair-value gain took a toll on results for real estate developer Perennial for its fiscal second quarter ended June 30. Net profit for the three-month period plunged 74.9 per cent to S$2.2 million, from S$8.6 million a year ago, mainly due to higher net finance cost attributed to higher interest rates and additional loans to fund new investments. Earnings per share for the quarter came in at 0.13 Singapore cent, down from 0.52 cent for the year-ago period. Revenue rose 52.4 per cent to S$27.6 million, from S$18.1 million last year, mainly attributable to contributions from Capitol Singapore and PIHMH for the full three months of Q2 2019, as well as higher fee income from the group's management business. Perennial shares closed at 58 Singapore cents on Tuesday, down 1.7 per cent, or one cent.

GSH Corporation: GSH on Tuesday posted declines for its second quarter, with net profit down 40.8 per cent to S$1.31 million on higher cost of sales and a weaker hospitality business. For the quarter ended June 30, the property developer posted revenue of S$31.1 million, up 35.5 per cent. But this was dragged down by cost of sales, which shot up 68 per cent year on year to S$15.6 million. GSH shares closed unchanged at 38 Singapore cents on Tuesday, before the results were announced.

EC World Reit: EC World Reit on Tuesday posted lower second-quarter distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.547 Singapore cents from 1.57 cents, as gross revenue fell amid "an uncertain macro environment", according to the Chinese e-commerce logistics-focused Reit (real estate investment trust). Books will close on Sept 3 and distribution is payable on Sept 26. The decline in DPU came as second-quarter income available for distribution fell 1.3 per cent to S$12.3 million year on year. For the quarter ended June 30, gross revenue slid 4.8 per cent to S$23.7 million from the previous year, while net property income slipped 7.2 per cent to S$21.2 million from the previous year. EC World Reit units closed down 1.36 per cent at 72.5 Singapore cents on Tuesday, before its results were announced.

China Sunsine Chemical Holdings: Speciality rubber chemicals producer China Sunsine on Tuesday posted a net profit of 155.8 million yuan (S$31 million) for the second quarter, down 35 per cent from the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the three months ended June 30 fell 17 per cent to 727 million yuan, as a lower average selling price offset a rise in sales volume. Earnings per share was 31.77 fen, down 35 per cent from 48.75 fen for the same period a year earlier. China Sunsine shares closed flat at S$1.07 on Tuesday before the results were released.

PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH): POSH has sunk further into the red, with its second-quarter net loss widening by 49 per cent to US$8.6 million from a net loss of US$5.8 million for the year-ago period. Loss per share was 0.48 US cent for the three months ended June 30, compared to a loss per share of 0.32 US cent a year ago, the mainboard-listed operator of offshore support vessels said early on Wednesday morning. No dividend was declared for the quarter. Revenue tumbled 11 per cent year on year to US$74 million for the quarter, down from US$83.1 million. Shares of POSH ended Tuesday at S$0.15, up 0.3 cent or 2.04 per cent, before the results were released.

Jumbo Group: The seafood restaurant operator saw third-quarter net profit decline 24.8 per cent on year to S$1.7 million, as revenue inched up and expenses rose. Revenue rose 0.8 per cent year on year to S$36.4 million for the third quarter as Jumbo opened three new restaurants in Singapore - Jumbo Seafood at Jewel Changi Airport, Zui Yu Xuan Teochew Cuisine and Chao Ting Teochew Pao Fan at Far East Square. However, revenue was affected by the Jumbo Seafood restaurant at The Riverwalk, which was closed for one month for renovations.

Expenses also increased largely due to the opening of the new restaurants. Employee benefits rose 1.1 per cent to S$11.5 million, operating lease expenses went up 4.3 per cent to S$3.6 million, while utilities increased 10.8 per cent to S$1 million. Earnings per share for the third quarter stood at 0.3 Singapore cent, unchanged from a year ago. The counter closed flat at 38 Singapore cents on Tuesday, before results were announced.

Cosmosteel: Cosmosteel on Tuesday posted a net profit of S$1.2 million for the third quarter, reversing from a net loss of S$1.9 million for the same period a year earlier. Revenue for the three months ended June 30 was S$24 million, an increase of 19.3 per cent. This was due mainly to higher revenue from customers in the trading sector, partly offset by a decrease in revenue from the energy sector.

Earnings per share was 0.42 Singapore cent, reversing from a loss per share of 0.65 Singapore cent for the third quarter last year. CosmoSteel shares fell 0.2 Singapore cent or 2.67 per cent to S$0.073 on Tuesday before the results were announced. CosmoSteel is on the Singapore Exchange's watch lists for minimum trading price and financial entry criteria. It said it expects to return to profitability for the financial year ending Sept 30, 2019.