It turns out Big Wednesday had some cold hard truths for the local market as the S&P/NZX 50 index sank 1.8% with Infratil and Fisher & Paykel Healthcare disappointing investors, and the Reserve Bank’s dissenting voice raising the prospect that maybe interest rates won’t fall as far as people had thought.
And the Warehouse Group’s new chief executive wasn’t welcomed with open arms as the Red Sheds bled red on the bourse today.
It wasn’t all bad news though, with Eroad continuing its recent surge and Rakon rallying on an upbeat result.
And before New Zealand opened, Rocket Lab’s foray into the satellite payload segment was well-received as it kept rallying through after-hours trading.
Missing great expectations
The NZX50 dropped 220.07 points to 12,362.26, with 35 stocks falling, 10 gaining, and five unchanged. Turnover was $154.1 million across the main board.
Across Asia, stock markets were mixed, with Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index down 0.2% in late trading, while Singapore’s Straits Times Index gained 0.4% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose 0.2%.
Infratil led the benchmark index lower, sinking 5.9% to $10.60 as its underlying earnings came in at the upper end of guidance, although the outlook for its increasingly important CDC data centres business was softer than some investors had anticipated.
Meanwhile, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare dropped 4.5% to $35 after reporting record annual revenue and signalling more gains in the year ahead, albeit with margins getting squeezed by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Mexican production, where the medical device maker has significant operations.
And rounding out the major events of the day, the Reserve Bank cut the official cash rate 25 basis points to 3.25%, as expected, although one member of the monetary policy committee voted in favour of waiting to see how some of the uncertainties in the global economy play out.
Westpac NZ chief economist Kelly Eckhold said there was more division than anticipated in the monetary policy committee, and that it looks like policymakers want to slow down.
“A vote on the merits of today’s 25-basis-point cut hence signals more debate than that and suggests a raised bar for OCR cuts at each meeting going forward,” Eckhold said in a note. “It’s too early to call time on the easing cycle. But you never know it’s ended when it ends.”
The kiwi dollar traded at 59.47 US cents at 5pm in Auckland, down from 59.78 cents yesterday, while two-year swap rates jumped 11 basis points to 3.27%.
Shedding red
Meanwhile, Warehouse Group dropped 4.4% to 87 cents after promoting chief financial officer Mark Sturton to the top job, which has been filled by acting chief executive John Journee for the past year.
Other retailers rallied, with KMD Brands posting the biggest gain on the NZX50 as it rose 5% to 31.5 cents, while Hallenstein Glasson Holdings advanced 3.9% to $8, and Briscoe Group increased 08% to $4.89.
Property companies were mixed, with Kiwi Property Group gaining 3.5 % to 90 cents, Precinct Properties NZ increasing 2.6% to $1.18 and Argosy Property rising 1.4% to $1.085, while Stride Property Group slipped 0.9% to $1.16 after reporting a decline in adjusted funds from operations and holding its forecast dividend for the 2026 financial year.
Outside the benchmark index, Rakon jumped 7% to 61 cents after regaining ground in the second half of the financial year to hit the mid-point of earnings guidance.
Transport software and hardware developer Eroad surged 18% to $1.35, extending its gain so far this week to 43%.
Payments firm Smartpay slipped 3.4% to $1 after its earnings were squeezed by investments in upgrading its New Zealand platform. The firm is in talks with a suitor who’s indicated a potential price of $1.20 a share.
And before New Zealand’s market opened, Nasdaq-listed Rocket Lab surged 13% to US$28.76 – and has gained a further 4.1% in after-hours trading – after the firm announced a US$275 million acquisition of US national security satellite provider Geost.
Reporting by Paul McBeth. Image from Curious News.
