Stocks to watch: Noble, First Sponsor, AEM Holdings, Suntec Reit

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

Noble Group: Noble chairman, Paul Brough, on Wednesday urged shareholders to support the current board and its restructuring plan, arguing that dissenting shareholder Goldilocks has not offered a credible alternative. Noble will be holding its AGM on April 30. The counter last traded 11 per cent, or 1.2 Singapore cents, lower to close at 9.8 Singapore cents apiece on Tuesday.

First Sponsor Group: First Sponsor's net profit for the first quarter of 2018 rose 20.3 per cent to S$17.1 million from S$14.2 million a year ago, as higher income from property financing and property holding outweighed lower revenue from property sales. Earnings per share for the quarter came in at 2.90 Singapore cents from 2.41 Singapore cents last year. The counter closed unchanged at S$1.27 on Tuesday.

AEM Holdings: AEM reported a 98.6 per cent increase in its first-quarter earnings to S$8.2 million from the year-ago period, as higher sales and stronger profit margins helped to lift the bottom line. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, earnings per share came in higher at 12.23 Singapore cents from 9.54 Singapore cents in Q1 2017. AEM closed 13 Singapore cents lower at S$6.60 on Tuesday.

Suntec Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit): Suntec Reit's Q1 distribution per unit rose 0.3 per cent to 2.433 Singapore cents per unit, on the back of higher gross revenue and net property income mainly from its Suntec properties. Total distributable income for the quarter came in at S$64.8 million, 4.8 per cent or S$3 million higher than the year-ago period. Units in Suntec Reit closed at S$1.90 on Tuesday, down 1.6 per cent, or three Singapore cents.