MARKET CLOSE: Shares gain as Freightways rises to record; Chorus falls

New Zealand shares rose led by Freightways, which rose to a record after acquiring an Australia data management company. Chorus fell from a 14-month high as investors looked to cash in recent gains.

The NZX 50 Index rose 19.616 points, or 0.4 percent, to 5522.682. Within the index, 25 stocks rose, 16 fell and nine were unchanged. Turnover was $160 million.

Freightways advanced 4.6 percent to a record $5.96. The listed courier and data management company will spend up to A$30 million on Australian information management firm LitSupport, beefing up its offering to include electronic and physical evidence management services to the legal industry in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, and will immediately add to earnings per share, it said.

"They're kind of like a duopoly here in New Zealand, and it is a question of where is the growth going to come from," James Smalley, director at Hamilton Hindin Greene said. "It's a pretty heady time to be doing it, with the strength of the currency and the multiples they'll be paying in Australia, with the economy being pretty average, they're not going to be paying top dollar. A pretty heady acquisition for those guys."

Chorus, the regulated telecommunications network operator, dropped 2.9 percent to $2.66, giving up some of its 24 percent gain since the Commerce Commission lifted how much it can charge for use of its copper lines on Tuesday. Meanwhile, its credit rating outlook was revised to 'stable' from 'negative' by Standard & Poor's on the decision.

"A bit of pull back in Chorus today, given the tear the company has been on since post the Commerce Commission's ruling," Smalley said.

Spark New Zealand, formerly Telecom Corp and Chorus's biggest customer, fell 1 percent to $2.94.

DNZ Property Fund rose 0.3 percent to $1.83 cents after the property investor sold two Wellington buildings for $5.3 million, with the funds to contribute to its Westgate Mall project.

Fletcher Building rose 1.9 percent to $8.40.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare, which exports more than 90 percent of its breathing apparatus, gained 1.9 percent to a record $5.92, on the back of a falling New Zealand dollar, Smalley said.

Outside the benchmark index, Tenon, the wood mouldings manufacturer which posted its first annual profit in ten years, rose 0.6 percent to $1.75. Chairman Luke Moriarty told shareholders the company is considering merger or acquisition opportunities to capitalise on the recovering US housing market.

Scott Technology was unchanged at $1.55 after the industrial automation firm said it bought Australian business Machinery Automation and Robotics for A$13 million via bank debt, and said it may raise new capital to reduce borrowings.

Intueri Education Group rose 3.6 percent to $2.85. New Zealand's largest private training company has agreed to buy Academy Group NZ for an initial payment of $4 million and the balance on completion of the target's 2015 accounts, adding courses for pharmacy technicians, florists, motor trades and building.

(BusinessDesk)