Hong Kong penny stock jumps 129% after saying it will make masks

Pedestrians walk past an electronic billboard showing the Hang Seng Index figures in Hong Kong, on Feb 3, 2020. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

HONG KONG (BLOOMBERG) - A Hong Kong-listed maker of silicon and rubber keypads surged the most on record after saying it won an order to make masks for Beijing.

Ta Yang Group Holdings soared as much as 129 per cent on Friday (Feb 14) to HK$0.63, the highest since November 2018, and was up 35 per cent as of the midday break. About 62 million shares changed hands, 275 times Ta Yang's three-month daily average.

The company said in an exchange filing late on Thursday that it received an order from the state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission to make 5 million face masks. Ta Yang, which was not a mask maker before the deadly coronavirus outbreak, added it would be collaborating with a technology firm in Shenzhen to produce the masks and is seeking more orders while exploring the market for personal protective equipment.

Ta Yang, which generates most of its revenue from silicone rubber products and has posted annual losses from 2012 through 2018, is the latest stock in Hong Kong this week to benefit from the global shortage of masks due to the coronavirus.

Moody Technology Holdings soared 220 per cent on Tuesday after saying it would make masks. Ladies' apparel producer Veeko International Holdings and toymaker Kin Yat Holdings jumped 79 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively, on Thursday after saying they would transform their facilities to make masks.

Hong Kong Television Network, which operates an online shopping mall that sells masks, has surged 42 per cent this year.

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