News Parkiet

Equity markets

Lotos investors could get hit with margin expenses

Investors who buy shares of Grupa Lotos refinery in this year?s biggest IPO to date could end up paying up to 10 percent of the stock?s value to brokers if the offering is oversubscribed twenty times or more. Polish retail investors have to put up all the money up-front if they want to buy shares in IPOs and many take high-interest, short-term loans to do so.

Alcohol

CEDC raises forecasts

Poland?s biggest alcohol wholesaler, US-based Central European Distribution Corporation said yesterday it expects higher earnings and fiscal 2005 sales after reporting 36 percent increase in its first-quarter revenues earlier this year. CEDC, which recently made a bid for Polmos Białystok vodka maker, said it estimates this year?s earnings at between 1.54 and 1.64 dollars versus previous forecasts of $1.56 and $1.66 a share. Sales are set to rise to as much as 700 to 720 million dollars, up 20 to 40 million from previous estimates.

Information Technology

Pronox reports profits

IT component distributor Pronox Technology reported an 11 percent increase

in annual profits recently, posting 5 million zloty in net earnings. Privately held company, ranked no. 14 by sales in Polish IT surveys, said its sales were up 5 percent to PLN 387 million.

Metals

Śrubex adds new board members

Saturday?s shareholders? meeting has added to new board members, replacing one of the existing executives. The two, ex-CA IB Investment Management stockbroker Marek Dybalski and Rafał Mania, the head of BPH TFI mutual fund company, represent mutual funds with big stakes in the company.

Building materials

Decora sees 30 percent increase in earnings

Finishing materials manufacturer Decora SA said in a pre-IPO press conference it expects net earnings of at least 16 million zloty this year, up 30 percent from last year?s 12.3 million. The company, which is planning to sell shares to the public in early June, says its revenues will grow to 125 million zloty, up by a quarter even excluding two recent acquisitions.

However, Decora didn?t say how much it paid for stakes in two smaller competitors, Trans and Optimal because it says final payment will depend on profits reported by the two over the next three years. The acquisition was financed using a bank loan that will be repaid with IPO proceeds.

Public finances

Government to save money on interest rates

Polish government could save almost 2 billion zloty this year because of deeper than expected interest rate cuts and stronger Polish zloty. The country?s Finance Ministry said earlier it expects average open market rates of 7.4 percent for all of 2005 versus 5.5 percent today.