SGX shares hit 52-week high on surge in Q1 net profit

Singapore Exchange (SGX) shares jumped by more than 4 per cent yesterday and hit a 52-week high after the bourse reported its best quarterly net profit in more than a decade.

The stock closed up almost 7 per cent to $8.85 with about 11 million shares traded, making it one of the most heavily traded counters of the day.

Yesterday's close also put it well above its 52-week high of $8.61.

SGX reported a 25 per cent surge in first-quarter net profit to $114.2 million after markets closed on Thursday.

This was driven by higher demand for its suite of investments and risk management tools across its currency, commodity and equity asset classes in the three months to Sept 30, the company said.

Earnings per share rose 26 per cent to 10.7 cents, sufficient for the board to declare an interim dividend of 7.5 cents a share, unchanged from a year ago and payable on Nov 11.

Chief executive Loh Boon Chye said: "We had... robust performance across all key financial metrics and the highest quarterly net profit in more than 10 years.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 26, 2019, with the headline SGX shares hit 52-week high on surge in Q1 net profit. Subscribe