Chartered shares hit all-time low
(UPDATE: Adds comments from analysts, updates share price)
SINGAPORE, April 4 (Reuters) - Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing (NasdaqNM:CHRT - news) shares tumbled five percent to an all-time low of S$3.84 on Wednesday morning, mirroring the chip maker's weak U.S. close.
Singapore-based Chartered's American Depositary Shares (ADS) closed at US$21.5000 or S$3.8929 on Nasdaq.
At 0329 GMT, Chartered was down 16 cents or 3.96 percent at S$3.88 on heavy volume of more than 3.8 million shares.
This compares with its initial public offer price of S$3.34 in October 1999. Chartered closed at S$5.20 on its debut on November 1, 1999.
``There's really no good news in the semiconductor industry right now so the basic instinct is to sell Chartered, especially since Nasdaq had such a bashing last night,'' said an institutional dealer with a local brokerage.
The Nasdaq (^IXIC - news) plunged 6.17 percent to 1,673.00 points on Tuesday, its worst close since late October 1998.
The tech-laden index is officially in a bear market phase, defined as a drop of 20 percent or more from its all-time high close of 5,048.62 on March 10, 2000.
Analysts said Chartered could be supported at S$3.80 in the near term but, if this level broke, its IPO price of S$3.34 could be the next psychological support.
``The support of S$3.80 prices Chartered at 1.5 times book value and the stock is really undervalued because its Taiwanese rivals -- TSMC and UMC -- have never traded below two times their book value before,'' said Dharmo Soejanto at Kim Eng Securities.
Chua Wee Thia, analyst at Vickers Ballas Securities, was hard-pressed to find a floor for Chartered's share price.
``My previous support was S$4.80, or 1.8 times book value, but since that's been broken it's difficult now to predict the next support level,'' he said.
Chua said the selling in Chartered was ``justified'' due to the overwhelming negative news in the sector, particularly bloated inventories and shrinking demand for most of its U.S. customers. |
