The S&P/ASX 300 (INDEXASX: XKO) (ASX: XKO) has had another topsy-turvy day, but has ended down 0.1%, despite staging an afternoon recovery from heavy early falls.
We generally don't pay much attention to short-term or daily stock price movements, but if they are news specific, can indicate that something about the company has changed.
These six stocks appear to have earned the ire of investors for a number of reasons…
Pura Vida Energy NL (ASX: PVD), an oil and gas explorer, saw its shares fall 53.9% to 12 cents after the company reported finding no oil in its MZ-1 exploration well, offshore Morocco. The MZ-1 well cost was estimated at US$137 million, with all costs borne by Freeport-McMoran Oil & Gas. Pura Vida's is still hopeful of some success with deeper drilling to come, but clearly, shareholders aren't.
Baby formula producer Bellamy's Australia Ltd (ASX: BAL) has seen its share price drop 6.3% to $5.09, despite no news from the company. Perhaps investors are concerned about Chinese growth fears, which might reflect slowing sales for Bellamy's products in China. It's a tenuous straw really, and demand for the company's products is more likely to increase than fall over time. Another possible reason is investors cashing out after seeing a 200% increase in their shares since the start of this year.
Coal miner Whitehaven Coal Limited (ASX: WHC) has sunk 5.2% to $1.175. News reports suggest that a current supply glut in coal could last for several more years and prices could fall even further if China imposes even tougher import restrictions. Some cargoes have been rejected, including at least one from Australia according to reports, due to coal quality, but they may, in fact, be an attempt to protect the vast majority of Chinese coal miners operating at a loss. Whitehaven Coal appearsd to have some tough years ahead of it.
Gold miners Northern Star Resources Ltd (ASX: NST) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) have dropped 4.6% and 4.8% respectively after gold prices tumbled again overnight. Spot gold fell 0.6% to US$1,092.28 an ounce and many experts are predicting further falls for the gleaming metal. So far, Australian miners have had some protection as the exchange rate has tumbled to 72.73 US cents, but further commodity price falls could be in store.
Corporate Travel Management Ltd (ASX: CTD) has dropped 4.5% to $10.11, and is a long way from its 52-week high of $13.09. Corporate Travel hasn't released any news since early May, so it's probably fair to say that investors have become impatient and taken profits. They could be sadly disappointed when the company reports its full-year results next month – after Corporate Travel reported a 69% increase in net profit for the first six months of the financial year.
