comfit overmanning: STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-Si2i shares at record low on poor earnings

Friday, August 31, 2012

Shares of mobile phone retailer S i2i Ltd fell 7

percent to their record low after posting a full-year loss, hurt

by higher costs amid tougher competition and obsolete inventory.

S i2i said it made a loss of $187.7 million for the

15-months ended June, compared to a net profit of $121 million

in the year-ago period.

"This is in line with the lacklustre outlook for the feature

phone market. While the outlook for smart phones remains robust,

feature phones are increasingly being commoditized even for the

low-end market as smart phone become more affordable, driving

shipment volumes downwards," DMG & Partners said in a note.

1041 (0241 GMT)

(Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore;

charmian.kokthomsonreuters.com)

************************************************************

9:28 STOCKS NEWS SINGAPORE-CIMB downgrades Parkway Life to

'neutral'

CIMB Research downgraded Parkway Life Real Estate Investment

Trust, which owns healthcare assets, to 'neutral' from

'outperform', citing high valuations as it trades at a premium.

Units of Parkway Life were down 0.5 percent at S$1.925, and

have gained 8.2 percent so far this year.

"The market has rewarded the stock with a handsome defensive

premium. At 30 percent premium over book and yield compression

to 5 percent, we struggle to see significant upside," said CIMB.

However, CIMB raised its target price to S$2.11 from S$1.96,

taking into account a lower discount rate of 7 percent, and said

possible acquisitions in Malaysia and Australia could be a

re-rating catalyst.

In Japan, the plans of Parkway Life's management to upgrade

assets is a compelling strategy for long-term growth, said CIMB.

(Reporting by Charmian Kok in Singapore;

charmian.kokthomsonreuters.com)

comfit overmanning