Stocks to watch: Singtel, Sembmarine, SGX, SIA, Frasers Hospitality Trust

THE following stocks have made announcements that might affect trading when the market opens on Thursday:

Singtel said on Thursday morning that it has sold its 30 per cent stake in travel service marketing and distribution firm, Abacus Travel Systems (ATS), for US$3 million.

The consideration was paid in cash by the buyer Abacus International upon completion of the transaction, Singtel said. With this divestment, ATS will no longer be a joint venture of the group.

Rigbuilder Sembcorp Marine (Sembmarine) said on Wednesday evening that its second quarter earnings tumbled 17 per cent from a year ago to S$109.23 million. Revenue for the three months ended June 30, also slid 9.9 per cent to S$1.21 billion, due to lower revenue recognition from rig projects. The group declared an interim dividend of four Singapore cents per share, down one cent from the previous year.

Singapore Exchange (SGX) posted a 24.5 per cent year-on-year rise in fourth-quarter net profit to S$96.22 million. Revenue for the three months ended June 30 was up nearly 25 per cent at S$215.61 million, while earnings per share came to nine cents, up from 7.2 cents in the year-ago period. Its board has proposed a final dividend of 16 cents per share, payable on Oct 9.

Singapore Airlines' (SIA) net profit for the first quarter jumped to S$91.2 million, from S$34.8 million in the corresponding quarter last year, due to a lower share of losses from associated companies. Revenue, which included contributions from now-subsidiary Tiger Airways, inched up 1.4 per cent to S$3.73 billion, from S$3.68 billion in Q1 2014.

Frasers Hospitality Trust announced a distribution per unit (DPU) of 1.56 Singapore cents for its third quarter, which was 0.65 per cent higher than its forecast. Compared to its earlier expectations, gross revenue was 3 per cent lower at S$23.72 million, while net property income was 1.2 per cent lower at S$19.23 million.