|
RARELY-traded Manila Jockey Club (MJC) Inc. was the
biggest gainer in the week ended July 4 but the
comparison was made between the trades on July 2 on June
27.
The
weekly monitor posted on the web site of the Philippine
Stock Exchange (PSE) showed MJC soared 64.71 percent to
P4.20 on July 2 from P2.55 on June 27 on identical
volume at 20,000 shares.
With
MJC’s big surge following a sudden plunge, PSE asked the
company twice for an explanation, to which Peter Francis
G. Zagala responded with a pro forma reply: “Please be
informed that the company is unaware of any information
relating to the said price movement.”
Zagala
is MJC’s corporate information officer.
Incidentally, on June 13, MJC also traded at P4.20
throughout the session. It had value turnover of P11.911
million on volume of 2.836 million shares. Arco Equities
Inc. was the biggest buyer of MJC shares with 2.737
million shares, raising its MJC stake to 71.063 million
shares, or 15.79 percent.
EEI
Corp., which belongs to the Yuchengco group, closed the
week at P2 for a huge gain of 6.35 percent, on value
turnover of P5.016 million. Its rise reduced its
accumulated loss to 28.57 percent.
San
Miguel Corp. A, which is also an index stock like EEI,
rose 3.90 percent to end the session on Friday at P40 on
value turnover of 19.521 million. SMC A still had to
wipe up its accumulated 3.61-percent drop.
Manila
Electric Co. (Meralco) slightly recovered from the
previous two month’s decline as a result of the threat
made by the group of Winston Garcia, president, general
manager and vice chairman of the board of trustees of
the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), to take
over the utility company from the Lopezes.
The
Garcia bloc, using the shares held by GSIS, Social
Security System and other government entities, failed to
oust the Lopezes. Instead, Garcia and company, who hold
nominal Meralco shares to qualify for election to the
board, took four of 10 board seats.
Meralco
closed on Friday at P41.50, up 2.47 percent from 40.50
in the previous week.
Among
the market’s worst performers was Benguet Corp. B, which
closed at P21 on value turnover of P2.1 million. The PSE
monitor showed this was Benguet B’s only trade in so
many months. The exchange’s web site did not show the
stock’s last trade before July 1.
From a
high of P1.22 on May 23, Geograce Resources Philippines
Inc. plunged 56.56 percent to a 30-day low of P0.53 on
July 3, slightly recovering the following session when
it closed slightly higher at P0.57.
Week-on-week, however, Geograce lost 31.03 percent when
it closed Friday at P0.57. Ironically, Geograce dropped
despite a filing that its board approved on June 24 “the
execution of an exploration and option agreement with
Vale Exploration Philippines Inc., the local subsidiary
of Companhia Vale de Rio Doce.”
In a
filing, Geograce said under said agreement, which was
signed also on June 24, “Vale and Geograce agree to
cooperate on the exploration of seven mining claims
located in Masbate province.”
The
mining claims, Geograce said in the same filing, which
total approximately 84,046 hectares. “Vale has committed
to fund exploration expenditures of up to $6 million,”
Geograce said. |
