The S&P/ASX 300 (Index: ^XKO) (ASX: XKO) crumbled today, losing 0.9% to close at 5,179.6 points, as miners, financial stocks and industrials all fell heavily. By sector, materials and metals & mining lost nearly 2%, while the best performing sector was the property trusts or A-REITs.
These four stocks saw their share prices tumble much more than the index…
Billabong International Limited (ASX: BBG) saw its share price crash 22.9% to $0.54 after the surfwear retailer reported that a number of headwinds had impacted on earnings by $2.5 million in the first four months, compared to the prior year. We covered the story in more detail here.
Intueri Education Group Ltd's (ASX: IQE) share price sunk 13.1% to $0.69, after New Zealand's largest private training institution reported that a review of funding for two of its schools would reduce this financial year's earnings by between $4 and $5 million. Education providers in both Australia and NZ appear to on the receiving end of government clamp downs on funding, which could spread to more companies.
Mesoblast limited (ASX: MSB) saw its share price drop 8.1% to $1.58, continuing a shocking week for the stem cell researcher. Shares have more than halved in the past five days, following a lacklustre US listing which was heavily discounted to the last closing price of $3.41 before the US IPO. US-listed shares have also plummeted – so much for US investors and analysts understanding biotech stocks better than in Australia, as Mesoblast CEO Silviu Itescu recently claimed.
Select Harvests Limited's (ASX: SHV) share price fell 7.2% to $9.61, despite no news from the company. Investors may well be taking some cash off the table after the share price gained more than 50% in the past year. Select Harvests is profiting while California – the world's largest almond-growing region – is facing a crippling drought. The company could also benefit from increasing demand for Asian demand for almond products such as almond milk – a popular alternative for people who are lactose intolerant.
