Stocks to watch: Singtel, CapitaLand Ascott Trust

The following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Thursday (May 22).

Singtel: The telco giant returned to the black with a net profit of S$2.8 billion for its second half ended March, compared with a net loss of S$1.3 billion for the previous corresponding period. This translates to a basic earnings per share of S$0.1688, against a loss per share of S$0.0813. The group also authorised its first share buyback programme of up to S$2 billion, as part of the company’s capital management strategy, in addition to incorporating its wholly owned subsidiaries in Singapore such as Singtel International Digital Services and IDS Cloud. Both subsidiaries were incorporated with an issued and paid-up capital of S$2 respectively. The counter ended Wednesday 1.1 per cent or S$0.04 higher at S$3.85 before the news.

CapitaLand Ascott Trust (Clas): The hospitality player priced S$260 million in perpetual securities at 4.2 per cent, it announced on Wednesday. The issuance is expected to be on or around May 28. The move is part of Clas’ S$2 billion multicurrency debt issuance programme established in September 2009. OCBC has been appointed the lead manager and bookrunner in the latest issuance. The net proceeds will be used for the redemption of S$250 million in fixed-rate perpetual securities issued by DBS Trustee on Jun 30, 2015. Units of Clas ended flat at S$0.86 on Wednesday.

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