The Prague Stock Exchange (PSE)’s blue-chip PX index broke out of the 1,100-1,200 point corridor on Thursday —the last trading day of this year — passing that psychological barrier for only the second time since May, thanks in large part to the strengthening of European equity markets in recent weeks. Mining group New World Resources (NWR) was the year’s best-performing stock, and developer ECM Real Estate Investments the biggest loser.
In terms of year-to-date (YTD) gains, the PX index added 9.6 percent, nearly on par with the European Stoxx 600 and the American S&P 500. Stocks performing in line with the PX index included Komerční banka (up 10.88 percent over 2009) and developer Orco Property Group (up 7.06 percent), followed by insurer VIG (up 6.6 percent), Pegas Nonwovens (up 5.64 percent) and a newcomer to the blue-chip index, Fortuna (up 4.25 percent).
“There were two clear winners on the bourse this year [mining group New World Resources (NWR) and Central European used-car dealership AAA Auto] and one definite loser [ECM Real Estate Investments],” Patria Online analyst Josef Němeček said. NWR grew by 65.24 percent this year, or nearly seven times above the index. AAA Auto was up 61.99 percent in 2009; the year’s third-best performer, PKN Orlen-controlled oil refiner Unipetrol, was up 38.73 percent.
In its final Equity Outlook report for 2010, Komerční banka noted that most of the stocks on the PSE increased in the past two quarters. AAA Auto was the least traded stock of the year, followed by KIT Digital and ECM Real Estate Investments.
Trading volumes on the Prague bourse, however, remained “very weak for most of this year” with the average daily trading volume roughly 17 percent below the average 2009 volume — and some 6o percent below the pre-crisis average volume of Kč 4.04 billion in 2007.
“There was a big difference between performances of other regional indices; the Polish WIG 20 grew 15 percent and is also close its two-year high, while the Hungarian BUX is flat YTD,” Komerční banka analyst Josef Němý said.
Apart from NWR and AAA Auto, among the best-performing stocks in the fourth quarter of 2010 were KIT Digital (up 32.75 percent) and Erste Bank (26.62 percent). On the other side of the spectrum, the worst performers of the final quarter were ECM and Nasdaq-listed Central European Media Enterprises (which trades under the CETV ticker).
ECM was hands down the clear loser for 2010, ending down 70.35 percent. Among the other losers, CETV was down 13.98 percent, state-controlled power producer ČEZ fell 9.48 percent and Telefonica 02 Czech Republic down 9.6 percent.
“We still see NWR as the most attractive stock on the PSE. Its shares are traded at relatively low multiples, the company recently resumed dividend payout and its profit is expected to grow next year,” Němý said. “The least attractive stock is, in our opinion, the real estate developer ECM.”
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