Latest news with #SameerLakhani
Gulf News
02-05-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Is UAE retail giant Lulu's share price making a comeback?
Dubai: Is Lulu's stock price in the mood for a comeback? After dropping 32% this year to Dh1.1, the ADX-listed share of the retail giant is slowly regaining some of the shine. The Lulu Retail stock is now up 16% to Dh1.28. Market watchers reckon that next week's trades will be crucial as the company readies to announce its Q1-2025 results. So far today, Lulu is at Dh1.26, lower by over 1%. But investors reckon there is a real possibility for Lulu's share to bounce back - and most important, hold its ground. The Lulu IPO price was Dh2.04 and resulted in one of the biggest retail subscriptions ever for a UAE enterprise. 'Despite the uncertainty surrounding US tariffs and a slowdown for GCC economies, Lulu Retail's margins and profitability are expected to rise for Q1-25 and going forward,' said Sameer Lakhani, Managing Director at Global Capital Partners. '(The Lulu share price gain) suggests that investors are turning optimistic about the company's performance. 'Of course for value investors, this is an opportunity to accumulate holdings. And this has increasingly been reflected at both the retail and institutional investor level.' Retail investors One of the big takeaways from the Lulu IPO was the presence of retail investors, many of whom had been first-time subscribers to a UAE stock market float. The Dh2.04 was the higher of the price range, and Lulu eventually drew an aggregate demand of Dh135 billion from subscribers. This made it the biggest for non-UAE government entity in 10 years. But once it listed, the stock was pulled lower, and the process accelerated after the company announced its 2024 numbers (even though the financials showed rock-solid growth in regional markets). This is why the Q-2025 results announcement will be crucial in setting the Lulu stock's short-term trajectory. 'We remain focused on strengthening our market position and look forward to the journey ahead with purpose and a shared vision for sustained growth," is what Saifee Rupawala, CEO of Lulu Retail said last week after the company's first AGM since the IPO. Mall of Muscat deal Lulu continues to deepen its Gulf-wide network. In Oman, there was the tie up between Tamani Global and LuLu International Holdings to 'support' the operational development and asset performance of Mall of Muscat. The Oman mall covers 1 million plus square feet of leasable area and hosts more than 170 retail outlets—including the 'Oman Aquarium', the first of its kind in the Sultanate. And this week, in the UAE, it was confirmed that the Ministry of Financeis integrating Lulu's B2B e-commerce platform - LuLuOn - into the UAE federal government's digital procurement system. What this means is that UAE government agencies can now access LuLu's product catalogue directly within the government's e-procurement platform. "Lulu Retail remains operationally strong, and there are still new areas of growth coming through," said a market analyst. "Somehow, so far, Lulu Retail's share price has not been able to catch up.
Gulf News
17-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
DFM's Parkin, ADX's PureHealth shares dazzle even with Trump tariff market wobbles
Dubai: The Parkin stock on DFM and PureHealth in ADX have emerged clear winners with investors since April 2, which was when US President Trump roiled global markets with his favorite word – tariffs. The share price of Parkin, the Dubai parking space operator, has shot up 9% since then and is currently at Dh4.97. And just yesterday (April 16), it was up 3.54% while the wider DFM index slipped 0.48%. Market watchers are tracking Parkin to see if it can beat the next level – its current 52-week high of Dh5.44. On ADX, PureHealth has put in a stellar 9% gain since April 2. The Abu Dhabi hospital and healthcare services holding company is trading at Dh2.72, and the current spike is seen as a bit of catching up with the 'real' value of the stock, sources say. But there is also a bigger investment flow picture emerging. Post the tariff announcements, 'A weak US dollar implies that in the investing ecosystem, the 'rest of the world' trade is gaining momentum,' said Sameer Lakhani, Managing Director at Global Capital Partners. 'In this atmosphere, GCC stock market valuations appear to be attractive. Especially for listed companies where the marginal returns of capital are high and require little or no capex. 'That's case with Parkin and even with Salik, making them somewhat 'inflation-proof'.' Market talk veers to 'dip buying' In fact, even as the UAE stock markets joined its Saudi and GCC peers in heavy sell-offs immediately after it became clear that Trump was quite serious about his tariff gameplan, investors here were thinking about 'buying the dip'. 'Even when bellwether stocks such as Emaar and banking blue-chips were dropping 5%-10%, these retail investors were looking to pick and choose at the lowest points,' said a day trader. 'There were many homing in on Salik and Parkin those days.' Some of that is actually turning into trades now. How's Salik faring? Since Trump's 'Liberation Day' announcement on tariffs, the Salik share price is down 0.9% at Dh5.04, with yesterday's drop being 0.78%., But it is seen as potentially picking up pace in the coming days, especially with the Q1-2025 financial results season set to start soon. The Dubai Taxi Co. stock has gained 2.5% during this period. 'There will be a few UAE stocks that could be helped by their Q1 results,' said an analyst. 'But this will all come about amidst the continuing noise of US reciprocal tariffs, although for now, it's confined to China.' Since April 2, the DFM is down 1.1%, while the ADX dipped 0.9%. That's in comparison to S&P's 9.3% decline, matched by Nasdaq's 9.4% dive.
