On Friday afternoon, the Helsinki Stock Exchange’s general index was up by 0.3 percent, standing at 9870.36 points. The afternoon’s most traded stock was Nordea, with its share increasing by 0.2 percent and reaching 11.15 euros. Observing the twelve most traded stocks, approximately half were declining while the other half were ascending.
The most significant rise was observed in the electronics contract manufacturer that had announced its results the previous day. Incap’s share was up by 8.2 percent, reaching 8.48 euros. Meanwhile, the Afarak Group, a results publisher, saw its share drop by 12.9 percent to 0.3475 euros.
Real estate investor Citycon reported that it had garnered 48.2 million euros from institutional investors through a share issue based on an accelerated bidding process, with the subscription price set at EUR 4.05 per share. However, this was 8.7 percent below the previous day’s closing price. The company’s board decided to issue 11.9 million shares, representing 6.9 percent of the share capital prior to the issue. This unexpected move led to a 6.3 percent drop in Citycon’s share price, which fell to 4.158 euros.
Stockmann, a department store group, is planning to propose changing its name to Lindex Group Oyj. The company reassured that this wouldn’t affect Stockmann department stores or the online store, which would continue to operate under the Stockmann brand. The news was positively received by investors, with Stockmann’s share rising by 5.3 percent to 2.995 euros in the afternoon.
Several founding family members of air purifier company Pallas Airin, including CEO Vesa Mäkipää, production manager Eppu Mäkipää, and director of product development Janette Mäkipää, are stepping down from the company’s management team. The board has initiated the search for a new CEO while appointing the group’s CFO, Teppo Sipilä, as the interim CEO. Furthermore, Aleksi Ahdi has been appointed as the group’s chief operating officer.
Nightingale Health, a company specializing in identifying health risks, has obtained official approval from the Health Sciences Authority of Singapore. The approval covers eight commonly used blood markers in healthcare. At the time of the review, Nightingale’s share was up 1.5 percent at 1.098 euros.
Solar power company Value announced that there are no hurdles to the continuation of the restructuring procedure. It is being handled by a lawyer Pekka Jaatinen, who believes that the company’s business has potential that can be further enhanced through the restructuring procedure.
Four earnings announcements on Friday
On Friday, pharmaceutical technology company Modulight, metal ore processor Afarak, hydraulic cylinder manufacturer Norrhydro Group, and electronics contract manufacturer Scanfil released their results reports.
Modulight reported a loss of EUR 5.1 million, a significant increase from the loss of 2.5 million euros recorded in the comparison period. The company’s turnover for October-December was 1.0 million euros, a decrease from the 1.3 million euros recorded in the same period the previous year. Modulight’s board proposed no dividend distribution for the 2023 financial year and refrained from providing guidance for 2024.
Afarak’s operating profit for July-December was EUR 0.6 million, a significant drop from the 28.2 million euros reported in the same period the previous year. The company noted that sales of refined special metal alloys fell by 23.5 percent in the second half of the year, while mined tons increased by 86.2 percent.
Following an earnings warning issued on February 9, Norrhydro Group’s earnings report revealed no major surprises. The company’s net sales fell to 12.0 million euros, and EBITDA also decreased, resulting in a loss of EUR 0.3 million. The company’s earnings per share fell to a loss of 0.145.
Scanfil’s turnover for October–December 2023 fell to 220.8 million euros from 222 million euros a year ago. The company’s operating profit remained the same at 13.4 million euros. Scanfil’s board proposed a dividend of EUR 0.23 for 2023.
