In Focus: INA’s Stock Remains

At the Zagreb Stock Exchange, stagnation of the Crobex is expected today, with INA’s stock remaining in focus for investors. However, as we approach the Christmas holidays, a decline in trading volume is also anticipated.

Of the 9 analysts from brokerage firms who participated in Hina’s survey, five expect stagnation of the Crobex today, two expect an increase, and two expect a decrease. The Crobex index weakened by 0.25 percent yesterday, to 2,039 points, while the Crobex10 fell by 0.14 percent, to 1,108 points. Regular trading amounted to 114 million kuna, which is 26 million less than on Friday. The highest turnover was again achieved by INA’s stock, at 90.84 million kuna, which is 34 million less than on Friday. Pension funds have purchased about 260,000 INA shares in the last five trading days, while MOL’s offer pertains to approximately 800,000 shares held by small and institutional investors.

“Today, I expect similar trading on the domestic market as yesterday, meaning stagnation of the Crobex with INA’s stock in the greatest focus of investors,” assesses Ana Franin, a financial analyst at Raiffeisen Consulting. Among important business announcements, today’s press conference of Končar Elektroindustrije stands out, where the company’s leaders will present business results for this year and plans for 2011.

Franin emphasizes that as the Christmas holidays approach, a decline in investor interest in stocks can be expected, which will weaken trading volume both on the domestic and global markets. Positive signals continue to arrive from global exchanges. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 index slightly rose on Monday, but trading was cautious as there were no new news that could significantly move the market. In Asian and European markets, stock prices also rose this morning.

“The most important global stock indices are at their highest level in the last two years. I assume that the positive sentiment will continue as analysts have very good expectations regarding the business results of American companies,” concludes Franin.