Market close: shares gain as Fletcher recovers, Warehouse, Kathmandu rise

New Zealand shares rose, pushing the NZX 50 Index to a record high, as Fletcher Building recovered from a selloff sparked by an investor presentation last week and better retail data helped lift Kathmandu and Warehouse Group.

The NZX 50 gained 25.49 points, or 0.6 percent, to 4621.72. Within the index, 29 stocks rose, 11 fell and 10 were unchanged. Turnover was about $160 million, with Fletcher, Ryman Healthcare and Telecom accounting for about half of trading by value.

Fletcher, the construction and building products group, rose 3.7 percent to $8.44. The stock had dropped in the wake of a presentation to a Macquarie investor conference last week, when executives indicated earnings may be at the lower end of guidance.

"Building has recovered from the fallout" as investors put the comments in context, says David Price, a broker at Forsyth Barr. The Reserve Bank of Australia's decision to cut interest rates had also given Fletcher a lift.

Kathmandu, the outdoor equipment retailer, rose 4.4 percent to $2.83 and Warehouse rose 3.7 percent to $4.25.

Excluding fuel, seasonally adjusted spending on electronic cards rose 2.1 percent in April, Paymark said today.

Jeweller Michael Hill International rose 1.4 percent to $1.42.

NZ Oil & Gas gained 2.3 percent to 88 cents. The spot price of Brent crude oil has gained to $US105.75 a barrel, the highest in about a month.

Summerset Group, the retirement village operator, gained 0.3 percent to $3.20, adding to its 43 percent advance this year. The company said today it plans to list on the Australian stock exchange, putting its shares in front of an investor pool more than 20 times larger than in its home market.

"We have seen increased Australian investor interest in Summerset," chairman Rob Campbell says.

Rival Metlifecare gained 1.6 percent to $3.75 while Ryman Healthcare, the biggest of the three listed rest-home operators, slipped 0.2 percent from a record high to $6.45.

Contact Energy rose 1.9 percent to $5.48 and Infratil rose 1.7 percent to $2.37 as the Office of the Clerk said a petition for a referendum on the sale of state power companies hadn't garnered enough support. The opposition Labour and Greens had been promoting the petition with Grey Power. They have also proposed regulating the electricity market.

Telecom edged up 0.2 percent to $2.685.

Xero, the cloud-based accounting company, fell 3.7 percent to $13, trimming its gain this year to 74 percent.

Property for Industry rose 2.2 percent to $1.37, leading gains among some property investors. Kiwi Income Property Trust rose 0.9 percent to $1.19 and Goodman property rose 0.4 percent to $1.145.

Mainfreight, the transport group, rose 1.6 percent to $10.57.

(BusinessDesk)