Yangzijiang, AEM back in vogue; volatile markets ahead following US-Iran tension

SINGAPORE – The Straits Times Index slipped from a high above 5,000 points on Feb 23 during a busy earnings and trading week, falling to a low of 4,956 on Feb 27 with all three Singapore banks pulling back, before rebounding to close at 4,995.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding led Feb 27’s rally, climbing more than 10 per cent during the day and up north of 16 per cent through the week to close the week at $4.34.

The shipbuilder reported a net profit of 4.5 billion yuan (S$827.4 million) for the second half ended Dec 31, 2025, up 24.6 per cent from 3.6 billion yuan in the same period a year earlier.

Revenue for the half year rose 15.8 per cent to 15.6 billion yuan from 13.5 billion yuan previously. The group said the increase was driven by more vessel deliveries and steady construction progress, alongside more orders and higher prices for newly built ships.

Yangzijiang Shipbuilding chief executive Ren Letian said the shipbuilder expects order momentum to continue into 2026.

It will aim to fill remaining delivery slots for 2029 and gradually open positions for 2030, while continuing to convert its order book into profits.

AEM outperforms

Semiconductor testing equipment maker AEM Holdings was the other outperformer of the week.

AEM’s shares soared more than 44 per cent through the week to close on Feb 27 at $2.90 after the company reported better-than-expected 2025 results due to demand from a new customer.

For more than a decade, it had relied on Intel for the vast majority of its revenue.

AEM on Feb 25 announced earnings of $17.1 million for the full year ended Dec 31, 2025, up 47.8 per cent from the previous year, while revenue rose 5 per cent to $399.3 million over the same period.

Its board of directors also resumed dividend payouts to shareholders, recommending a final dividend of 1.3 cents per share for FY2025.

Based on current visibility, demand from its new customer is robust, and revenue contribution is anticipated to grow significantly in 2026, said the company.

It guided for 2026 revenue to be in the range of $460 million to $510 million, with artificial intelligence semiconductor sales projected to grow more than 50 per cent year on year.

In a Feb 26 report, CGS International analyst William Tng recommended investors add AEM to their portfolios, citing expectations of double-digit profit growth over the next three years, and set a target price of $3.14 on the stock.

CDL, UOL sink, then claw back ground

City Developments Limited (CDL) tumbled from a multi-year high of $10 on Feb 24 to $9.33 at the close of Feb 26, as investors took profit ahead of the developer’s results on Feb 27.

Its shares rebounded sharply after CDL reported strong 2025 earnings and said that it would commit to paying dividends at least once a year, with a minimum payout ratio of 35 per cent based on reported net profit.

CDL closed at $9.82 on Feb 27, up by more than 4.9 per cent for the day.

For the six months ended Dec 31, the hotel and property group’s net profit soared 374 per cent to $538.5 million from $113.5 million in the same period a year ago. 

This boosted CDL’s full-year 2025 earnings to $629.7 million, up 213 per cent from $201.3 million in 2024.

CDL declared a final dividend of 25 cents per share, bringing total payout for 2025 to 28 cents, compared with the 10 cents declared for 2024, representing a dividend payout ratio of 40 per cent.

Its improved earnings were driven by a record $4.4 billion in residential sales from Singapore and $2 billion worth of asset sales during the year.

In 2026, CDL expects strong demand for public and private housing to persist, with the Government reviewing income ceilings for HDB flats and executive condominiums to reflect rising incomes, inflation and living costs.

“This review is timely as it would help make public housing and ECs (executive condos) more affordable for eligible Singaporeans and sustain positive market sentiment,” CDL said.

UOL’s shares moved in tandem with CDL’s during the week.

The developer hit a record high of $11.44 on Feb 24 before sliding to as low as $10.62 on Feb 26. The stock rebounded 5.6 per cent to close at $11.28 on Feb 27, after reporting strong results.

The company posted a 21 per cent rise in net profit to $276.2 million for the six months ended Dec 31, 2025, from $227.8 million in the same period a year earlier.

For the full year, UOL’s net profit increased 34 per cent to $481.7 million from $358.2 million in FY2024, while revenue grew 16 per cent to $3.2 billion from $2.8 billion.

The board proposed a first and final dividend of 18 cents per share and a special dividend of seven cents per share for FY2025. This brings the total dividend for the year to 25 cents per share, up from 18 cents for FY2024.

Banks pull back

All three Singapore banks fell, with UOB dropping the most after the lender reported lower fourth-quarter and full-year earnings for 2025.

UOB fell to a low of $36.54 during the week before paring some losses to close down 4.5 per cent at $36.97.

It had reported a 7 per cent fall in fourth-quarter net profit as net interest income moderated amid margin headwinds.

The lender’s earnings for the three months ended December amounted to $1.41 billion, down from $1.52 billion a year ago.

The figure missed analysts’ forecast of $1.44 billion in a Bloomberg poll.

It recommended a final dividend of 71 cents per ordinary share, down 23 per cent from 92 cents a year earlier, bringing the total 2025 payout to $1.56.

The total 2024 payout, including special dividends of 50 cents, was $2.30.

For 2025, net profit was $4.7 billion, a 23 per cent drop from $6 billion a year ago, beating a Bloomberg forecast of $4.64 billion.

UOB said the drop in earnings was largely due to the pre-emptive general allowances that the group proactively set aside in the third quarter to strengthen provision coverage amid growing macroeconomic uncertainties.

Allowances for credit and other losses more than quadrupled in the quarter to $1.36 billion.

Rival OCBC Bank also fell, with the shares down 1.5 per cent through the week to close on Feb 27 at $21.43.

Its earnings for the quarter ended December 2025 were $1.75 billion, up 3 per cent from a year ago and beating analysts’ estimate of $1.72 billion in a Bloomberg poll.

The lender recommended a final dividend of 42 cents and a special dividend of 16 cents for 2025, as part of its previously announced capital return plan. The total payout for 2025 amounts to 99 cents, down from 101 cents in 2024.

For 2025, OCBC’s net profit was 2 per cent lower at $7.42 billion, after tax expenses rose 27 per cent.

DBS Bank, which announced a 10 per cent drop in fourth-quarter earnings the week before, also fell, closing the week at $57.12, down 1.6 per cent.

Other market movers

Shares of property agency PropNex fell 12.82 per cent through the week to close Feb 27 at $2.04, even as its 2025 earnings rose 72 per cent year on year to $70.4 million, while revenue climbed 42.6 per cent to $1.1 billion from $783 million previously.

The group said this marked its strongest full-year performance in its 25-year history.

Shares of CNMC climbed 19.3 per cent through the week to close at $1.73.

For the full year ended Dec 31, net profit rose 326.5 per cent to US$42 million (S$53 million), while revenue climbed 96.9 per cent to US$128.4 million, crossing the US$100 million mark for the first time.

Offshore vessel builder and charterer Nam Cheong reached a record high of $1.45 on Feb 25, after it secured a US$64.5 million contract for four offshore support vessels, marking its first shipbuilding contract win in over a decade.

The company said the order was placed by an “established United Arab Emirates-based energy maritime logistics company”.

Nam Cheong pared gains to close the week at $1.39. Despite better results in the second half of 2025, revenue for the full year fell 6.5 per cent to RM619 million (S$201 million), while earnings fell more than 65 per cent to RM269 million for the period.

Valuemax group executive chairman Yeah Hiang Nam and his wife Tan Hong Yee sold 34.8 million shares at $1.16 each to a group of investors for $40.37 million.

The buyers included abrdn Asia, Amova Asset Management Asia, Avanda Investment Management and ICH Synergrowth Fund.

The couple retained a controlling stake of 81.53 per cent after the sale.

According to the company’s FY2024 annual report, Mr Yeah had a deemed interest in 85.09 per cent of the shares as at March 10, 2025.

ValueMax said the transaction “broadens minority shareholder representation, and is expected to improve the trading liquidity and free float of the company’s shares. This also supports the company in meeting the eligibility criteria for inclusion in indexes such as the iEdge Singapore Next 50 Index”.

The pawnbroker on Feb 23 reported that earnings for 2025 reached a record $102.1 million, up 23.2 per cent over the preceding year and surpassed $100 million for the first time. Revenue was up 21.3 per cent over the same period, to $553.1 million.

Shares of ValueMax fell 10.4 per cent through the week to close at $1.12 on Feb 27.

What to look out for next week

Markets, such as stocks and gold, will be volatile after the

US-Israel attack on Iran on Feb 28,

spurring Iran to respond by launching missiles towards Israel.

The situation will impact energy prices and affect countries far from the conflict, including Singapore, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong said at a Chinese New Year dinner at Teck Ghee Community Club on Feb 28.

It also comes at a time when global economic uncertainty has worsened after the US imposed new import tariffs.

This will dampen trade and investment, significantly affecting Singapore’s small, open economy, SM Lee said.