Heading into the Christmas the S&P/ASX 200 (Index: ^AJXO) (ASX: XJO) closed unsurprisingly flat as big hitting institutions head into holiday mode and investors have little economic data of significance to act on. However, several companies came under selling pressure for different reasons today, so it's worth taking a look at what may be behind the price action.
Liquefied Natural Gas Ltd (ASX: LNG) shares are down 2.7% to just 72.5 cents today despite the company releasing no specific news to the ASX. The shares were bid as high as $5 in 2015 as excitement soared due to the potential of its innovative technology to support large-scale liquefied natural gas projects in international energy markets. However, the crashing oil price has sent investors rushing for the exits on nerves over the changing outlook for its planned US construction projects.
Spotless Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: SPO) shares fell 3 cents to $1.09 today as the fallout from its early December profit downgrade that saw shares nearly collapse in half continues to reverberate. On December 2 the contracting services business announced that it expects to book several one off costs this financial year that will likely result in net profit being 10% lower than the prior year.
Collins Foods Ltd (ASX: CKF) shares dropped 2.7% to $4.61 as the company released no specific news to the stock exchange. Today's selling is likely the result of investors booking profits before the new year as the stock has doubled in value over the course of 2015. The KFC merchant just posted a strong first half to FY16, with KFC same-store sales up 5.2% over the prior corresponding period and I wouldn't be surprised to see the share price put on some weight in 2016.
Ziptel Ltd (ASX: ZIP) shares dropped 2.2% to 45 cents and are down 66% over the last three-month period. This company generated some wild investor excitement on its potential to deliver low-cost mobile communication services across sub-continental Asia in particular. The Zipt App now has more than 5 million installations according to the company, but investors appear unimpressed marking the stock down again today.
