4 Stocks This Week (Catalist Sponsors) [27 Oct 2017] – DBS Bank; HLF; UOB Kay Hian; ZICO Holdings

As highlighted in last week’s instalment of 4 Stocks This Week, this year marks the 10th year anniversary of Catalist, the board of Singapore Exchange (SGX) that superseded the SESDAQ. The Catalist board provides an alternative listing path for smaller companies with growth potential that do not yet meet the criteria to list on the Mainboard.

(Source: SGX)

With the aim of propelling the growth of Catalist, and companies on it to greater heights, SGX has partnered with ShareInvestor to launch Investor-One, a portal that that brings together resources and content to promote investor awareness and interest in Catalist stocks. A novel feature of the website is its Investor-One Social section, which features insights and discussions from investors, powered by InvestingNote.

As part of the Catalist listing process, companies need to appoint a company that has attained accreditation as a Full Sponsor from SGX. The sponsor provides advice and support to the prospective Catalist companies in preparation for their listing.

This includes advising on listing rules and corporate governance matters, investigating the suitability of the company’s directors, making sure the company can fulfil their listing obligations as well as ensuring due diligence is done for any corporate action. Once the sponsor is satisfied that all the criteria and due processes are in place, the sponsor will make the official notification to SGX for listing the company.

(Source: SGX)

For 4 Stocks This Week, we will look at four SGX-listed companies that perform duties as Catalist board Full Sponsors.

Read Also: FSMOne: How Singapore Investors Can Now Trade SGX Stocks With The Same Platform They Use For Bonds & Unit Trusts

DBS Group Holdings Ltd (SGX: D05)

This week, DBS Group Holdings Ltd’s shares surged 1.5% to its highest levels in over 10 years, closing at $22.68.

DBS is due to report earnings on 6 November, which may be impacted by its business development and expansion efforts. Interest rates, which has been seeing a sluggish uptick, may also have a bearing on its performance.

DBS’s acquisition of ANZ’s wealth management and retail banking businesses in Singapore and Hong Kong will likely have a big influence on its bottom line. In addition, DBS announced last month that it has received approval to launch a subsidiary in India and was ready to invest more into its operations in India. These efforts should be seen positively by investors in the long term.

Hong Leong Finance (SGX: S41)

Due to report its third quarter results in early November, HLF’s share price is trading near its 52-weeks high level of $2.73.

Its revenue from being a full sponsor falls under its Corporate Finance business. Besides this, it also provides SME Loans, Personal Loans and Deposit services.

UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Limited (SGX: U10)

Catalist Full Sponsor UOB-Kay Hian Private Limited is a subsidiary of UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Limited, an investment holding company headquartered in Singapore that provides a wide range of financial services internationally. UOB Kay Hian also acts as the brokerage arm of UOB.

On October 27, 2017, UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Limited’s shares closed at $1.365.

ZICO Holdings Inc. (SGX: 40W)

ZICO Holdings Inc. is an investment holding company provides multi-disciplinary professional services across three segments: advisory and transactional services, management and support services, and licensing services. It is the parent company of ZICO Capital Pte Ltd, which is a Catalist Full Sponsor.

Incorporated in 2010, ZICO Holdings Inc. is based in Singapore and has operations in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Thailand, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates.

As of 19 October 2017, ZICO Holdings’ market cap stood at $80.84 million, with its stock price closing at $0.27.

Catalyst For Catalist

Full Sponsors like those we highlighted this week play an important role in driving the sustainable growth of the Catalist  board. The growth and diversity of companies on Catalist is due to, in no small part, the guidance and due diligence provided by Full Sponsors.

With the continued strong support and focus of SGX as evidenced by new initiatives like Investor-One, investors can look forward to even more exciting opportunities on Catalist!

Read Also: What Every Newbie Investor Needs To Know About The SGX & STI

4 Stocks This Week is not a recommendation from us to buy or sell any of these stocks. For investors who are keen to find out more, you should continue researching about them before making your investment decisions.

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