The Straits Times Index lost ground in October, but the dip barely dented a good year.
The SPDR Straits Times Index ETF (SGX: ES3), which tracks the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI), delivered a total return of 18.7% from the start of 2026 to the end of October.
Three SGX Next 50 stocks did far better.
UMS Integration Limited (SGX: 558) returned 77.4%.
Frencken Group Limited (SGX: E28) and Pan-United Corporation Ltd (SGX: P52) followed with 43.0% and 40.3%.
These figures include dividends, and each one more than doubled the ETF’s gain.
So, did the businesses keep pace with their share prices? It depends on the company.
Is Singapore’s building pipeline showing up in Pan-United’s numbers?
Pan-United is Singapore’s largest ready-mix concrete supplier.
In the first half of 2026 (1H2026), revenue grew 37% year on year (YoY) to S$549.6 million as construction activity picked up across Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Singapore brought in S$485.9 million, or about 88% of group revenue.
Profit grew even faster.
Net profit attributable to shareholders rose 49% YoY to S$30.6 million.
Operating leverage helped, as did efficiencies from the group’s AiR Digital platform.
Pan-United raised its interim dividend by 50% to S$0.015 per share and paid it on 4 September 2026.
Free cash flow (FCF) improved to S$7.5 million from S$1.0 million a year ago as capital expenditure fell.
The group held S$86.2 million in cash against S$21.0 million in borrowings and S$39.5 million in lease liabilities.
Investors may also be looking ahead.
The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) expects S$47 billion to S$53 billion in construction demand for 2026, and S$31 billion of that had been awarded by June.
Changi Airport Terminal 5, the Marina Bay Sands expansion and MRT extensions anchor the pipeline.
On the flip side, FCF is still thin next to profit.
Trade receivables tied up S$26.0 million as sales grew.
Management also flagged energy costs and supply chain disruptions as risks.
How much of UMS’s profit growth came from its operations?
UMS makes precision parts and assembles equipment modules for semiconductor equipment makers.
In the third quarter of 2026 (3Q2026), revenue rose 61% YoY to S$95.4 million, while net profit attributable to shareholders more than doubled to S$21.1 million.
Semiconductor revenue grew 65% to S$83.1 million and aerospace revenue rose 55% to S$9.7 million, as component production ramped up for a new major customer.
Not all of it was good news.
Gross material margin narrowed to 52% from 58.2% because of product mix.
Profit also got a lift from a S$1.6 million foreign exchange gain, which came from currencies, not customers.
Cash flow is more reassuring.
FCF was S$14.9 million, against an outflow of S$10.8 million a year ago.
UMS ended September with S$49.0 million in cash and S$5.0 million in bank borrowings, before completing a S$138.6 million share placement in October.
The board proposed a third interim dividend of S$0.010 per share, payable on 18 December 2026.
With 177.6 million bonus shares issued in January and 52.9 million placement shares in October, that rate now applies to more shares.
What might investors be paying for?
Possibly what comes next.
UMS’s new major customer has issued upbeat guidance on AI-driven demand.
Industry association SEMI expects global spending on 300mm chip fabrication equipment to rise 31% to US$149 billion in 2026.
Why did Frencken’s shares rise when its profit fell?
Frencken builds complex electro-mechanical assemblies and plastic components for semiconductor, healthcare and automotive companies, among others.
At first glance, its 1H2026 results looked flat: revenue slipped 0.8% YoY to S$427.8 million and net profit attributable to shareholders fell 3.4% to S$19.3 million.
The detail looks better.
Gross margin widened by 0.9 percentage points to 15.0%, and gross profit grew 5.8% to S$64.4 million.
Administrative expenses rose 9.9% on staff and transformation costs.
Management expects 2H2026 revenue to beat both 2H2025 and 1H2026.
It guides for higher full-year revenue and profit, with semiconductor sales expected to rise.
To put it simply, investors may be paying for where Frencken is heading, not where it has been.
Cash flow is the part to watch.
FCF swung to an outflow of S$15.3 million from an inflow of S$50.6 million a year ago, as inventories and receivables absorbed S$81.6 million.
Frencken still holds S$68.8 million in net cash.
The missing interim dividend is normal, as Frencken pays dividends once a year with its full-year results.
FCF is the lifeblood of dividends, so second-half cash flow will shape the final payout.
Get Smart: Write down what the price expects
All three share one trait.
Their share prices appear to reflect where earnings could go, not just where they are today.
A simple habit helps here.
When a stock runs ahead of its results, write down what the business needs to deliver next.
For Frencken, that means a stronger second half and higher full-year profit.
For UMS, it means sales from its new major customer growing without margins slipping further.
Then check each set of results against your list, and you will know quickly whether the story still holds.
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Disclosure: The Smart Investor does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
