[SINGAPORE] Over the five trading sessions from Jun 20 to 26, institutions remained net sellers of Singapore stocks, with net institutional outflow of S$248 million following the S$74 million net outflow for the preceding five sessions. Net institutional outflow for the year to Jun 26 now stands at S$2.16 billion, driven by S$2.73 billion of net institutional outflow from the trio of STI banks.
Institutional flows
Over the last five trading sessions, stocks that saw the highest net institutional outflow were Singtel, OCBC, DBS, Wilmar International, CapitaLand Investment, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, Sembcorp Industries, Singapore Technologies Engineering, Jardine Cycle & Carriage, and City Developments.
Meanwhile, UOB, Keppel DC Reit, Singapore Exchange, CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust, Keppel, Frasers Centrepoint Trust, Jardine Matheson Holdings, Frasers Hospitality Trust, Mapletree Industrial Trust and Yangzijiang Financial Holding led the net institutional inflow over the five sessions.
This means, that from a sector perspective, Reits and technology experienced the highest net institutional inflow, while financial services and telecommunications saw the most outflow.
Share buybacks
The five sessions saw 19 primary-listed companies make buybacks totalling S$72.9 million. UOB, DBS and OCBC again led the consideration tally, collectively buying back S$69.7 million of shares.
On their current buyback mandates, UOB bought back 0.43 per cent of its outstanding shares, while DBS bought back 0.23 per cent (as at Jun 26).
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Secondary-listed Hongkong Land also continued conducting share repurchases on each of the five sessions at the rate of 440,000 to 450,000 shares per session.
Director transactions
The five trading sessions saw close to 100 filings for more than 30 primary-listed stocks. Directors or CEOs filed 11 acquisitions and three disposals, while substantial shareholders filed 24 acquisitions and 13 disposals. This included director or CEO acquisitions in Daiwa House Logistics Trust, Frencken Group, Q&M Dental Group (Singapore), Raffles Medical Group, Singapore Shipping Corp, Stamford Land Corp and SunMoon Food Company.
Q&M Dental Group (Singapore)
Between Jun 23 and 26, Q&M non-independent executive director and group chief executive officer Ng Chin Siau increased his total interest from 55.03 per cent to 55.78 per cent. The 7,041,300 shares were acquired by Quan Min Holdings at an average price of S$0.414 apiece. At the end of April, Dr Ng’s total interest stood at 53.02 per cent.
Back in April, he maintained that the company is expanding both the number of dentists and number of clinics. Dr Ng added that its courses in its Dental College are now recognised by the Committee for Private Education under SkillsFuture Singapore, with a one-year EduTrust certification, and it aims to achieve the four-year award to attract more foreign dental students. Dr Ng also reiterated that having grown rapidly during Covid, Q&M Dental aims to pursue mergers and acquisitions over the next two to three years. At the same time, the company is leveraging its advanced AI-driven information and treatment services to attract strategic partnerships.
Frencken Group
Frencken Group chairman and non-executive non-independent director Gooi Soon Chai has increased his deemed interest, with his family acquiring 10,000 shares on Jun 23. Gooi maintains a 23.75 per cent total interest in the company, up from 23.66 per cent at the end of 2024. The acquisition followed his family acquiring 45,000 shares on May 21 and Sinn Hin Company acquiring 30,000 shares on May 29.
Gooi was appointed as a director in February 2015 and as the group’s chairman in August 2016. He has over 30 years of global leadership in technology, with deep expertise across semiconductors, life sciences and electronics, and has led multiple successful transformations, driving exponential growth in the semiconductor, automotive and industrial electronics sectors.
The IMS division currently contributes about 11 per cent of Frencken Group’s overall revenue, while the mechatronics division – seen by Gooi to be a key driver of growth – accounts for the majority at around 89 per cent. On Jun 3, the company announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, ETLA, has accepted a lease offer from JTC for an industrial site at Kaki Bukit Avenue 5. The group plans to build a new, larger manufacturing facility at the site to expand and consolidate its mechatronics operations, currently located at Changi North and Seletar Aerospace Link.
Back at the FY24 annual general meeting held in April, Gooi said that the group operates across high-growth sectors – semiconductor, medical and life sciences – while maintaining a presence in industrial automation and automotive. He highlighted that with a global footprint spanning the US, Singapore and China, it remains agile amid tariff challenges and recently expanded its US operations.
Gooi maintained that the group’s customer base includes industry-leading clients and it partners closely with customers on supply chain strategies and currently operates a US facility, with potential for expansion based on demand. He added that growth opportunities also exist in Europe, where several clients are scaling up.
In FY24, the group achieved a 14.3 per cent increase in attributable net profit of S$37.1 million, up from S$32.5 million in FY23. For its subsequent Q1FY25 (ending Mar 31), Frencken Group’s revenue rose 11.5 per cent year on year to S$215.8 million, driven by stronger contributions from the mechatronics division. The gross profit margin also improved to 14.8 per cent from 13.7 per cent, reflecting better operating leverage. Attributable net profit also grew 12 per cent to S$10 million, up from S$9 million in Q1FY24.
Singapore Shipping Corp
Between Jun 19 and 24, Singapore Shipping Corp executive chairman Ow Chio Kiat acquired 149,400 shares at an average price of S$0.276. This increased his total interest from 43.62 per cent to 43.66 per cent. Ow has been gradually increasing his interest from 42.97 per cent in May 2024.
The group maintains businesses in ship owning, ship management, ship agency and terminal operations, and logistics services. Amid the recent global trade uncertainty, the group maintains it continues to deliver stable ship-owning results through long-term charters with blue-chip partners, recently renewing a five-year deal for MV Boheme, while maintaining zero net gearing and a cautious investment stance.
For its FY25 (ended Mar 31), the group reported attributable net profit of US$11.4 million, a 24.6 per cent increase from FY24. It noted that the higher revenue and profit in ship owning for FY25 stemmed from the absence of drydocking off-hire and a US$600,000 waiver on an operational claim, while the agency and logistics segment saw full-year gains from high-margin projects despite a H2FY25 slowdown in activity. Ow also increased his interest in Stamford Land over the week, where he also serves as executive chairman.
Daiwa House Logistics Trust
On Jun 26, Daiwa House Asset Management Asia non-independent executive director CEO Jun Yamamura acquired 30,000 units of Daiwa House Logistics Trust (DHLT) at S$0.565 apiece. This took his direct interest to 0.02 per cent. Yamamura has over two decades of experience in real estate development and Reit management at Marubeni Corp, including key roles in Reit mergers and IPOs, and most recently served as senior chief of business development at Daiwa House Industry before joining the manager of the Reit. During Q1FY25 (ended Mar 31), DHLT acquired DPL Gunma Fujioka in Greater Tokyo, secured new tenants with a 13 per cent rent uplift, and maintained a strong portfolio occupancy of 92.1 per cent with a weighted average lease expiry of 6.7 years, further enhancing its tenant base and lease profile.
SunMoon Food Company
Between Jun 20 and 26, SunMoon Food Company executive director and CEO Zhang Ye acquired 672,900 shares. This increased his total interest from 52.24 per cent to 52.31 per cent. Zhang has gradually increased it from 51.57 per cent since the group reported its FY24/25 (ended Mar 31) results on May 27.
The writer is the market strategist at SGX. To read SGX’s market research reports, visit sgx.com/research.
