Blue-chip stocks are famed for their stability and dependability.
Such stocks offer a safe harbour during troubled times as they have a track record of weathering both good times and bad.
Some investors like to hunt through the bargain bin to see which stocks are scrapping their year-lows.
However, from experience, such businesses may turn out to be value traps.
Instead, you can look for stocks that are scaling a new 52-week high.
Investors may be feeling optimistic about the company’s business prospects and have pushed its share price higher.
Let’s take a look at three Singapore blue-chip stocks that recently hit new year highs to see if they should qualify to be on your buy watchlist.
Keppel Corporation Limited (SGX: BN4)
Keppel is a conglomerate with four divisions – energy & environment, urban development connectivity, and asset management.
The group’s share price recently touched a 52-week high of S$7.72 and is up almost 48% year to date to close at S$7.64.
The blue-chip conglomerate reported an encouraging financial performance for the first nine months of 2022 (9M2022).
Revenue jumped 24% year on year to hit S$6.8 billion for 9M2022 while net profit also improved over the same period.
There were other signs of strength.
Keppel’s Offshore and Marine (O&M) division reported its highest net order book since 2007, more than doubling from S$5.1 billion at the end of 2021 to S$11.6 billion as of 30 September 2022.
Its asset management arm, Keppel Capital, also saw fees rise by 11% year on year to S$186 million for 9M2022.
The division’s assets under management are on track to hit S$50 billion in assets under management by end-2022.
Investors are also optimistic about Keppel’s revised deal to divest its O&M division to Sembcorp Marine Ltd (SGX: S51) which should complete by early next year.
Genting Singapore Limited (SGX: G13)
Genting Singapore is the owner and operator of the integrated resort (IR) at Resorts World Sentosa (RWS).
RWS not only boasts attractions such as a theme park, Universal Studios Singapore (USS), but also has six themed hotels along with a casino and a world-class convention centre.
Genting’s share price has touched a 52-week high of S$0.89 and is up 11.5% year to date.
The group benefitted from a wave of optimism as countries reopened their borders and air travel resumed.
The resulting influx of tourists, along with higher numbers of Singaporeans visiting its attractions, led to a stellar financial performance for the third quarter of 2022 (3Q2022).
Gaming revenue soared 96% year on year to S$382 million while non-gaming revenue more than doubled year on year from S$56.2 million to S$137.3 million.
Net profit surged 123.6% year on year to S$135.8 million.
Genting Singapore’s expansion plans for RWS 2.0 are proceeding smoothly, with the construction of a new attraction, Minion Land, at USS.
New infrastructure has also been added and upgraded on-site to support the enlarged operations of RWS 2.0.
Singapore Airlines Limited (SGX: C6L)
Singapore Airlines Limited, or SIA, is Singapore’s flagship carrier.
The group’s share price recently touched a 52-week high of S$5.58 and is up 10.4% year to date.
Passenger numbers on all of SIA’s flights have exceeded two million from July to October this year, and are almost four times higher than the 535,200 logged in January.
The airline also reported the strongest operating profit in its history of S$1.2 billion when it released its fiscal 2023’s first half (1H2023) earnings.
Shareholders were also pleasantly surprised to learn that the group had resumed paying out dividends with the payment of a S$0.10 per share interim dividend.
What’s more, SIA has also generated enough cash to redeem the first tranche of mandatory convertible bonds that were issued near the peak of the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Investors have more to look forward to as Changi Airport’s Terminal 4 recently reopened in September after a more than two-year hiatus.
Together with the reopening of Terminal 2 in May, all four of Changi Airport’s terminals are now operational.
Elsewhere, China is also finally relaxing its COVID-zero policy as public frustration mounts over its persistently-strict curbs.
It’s useful to note that mainland China saw the highest level of tourism receipts among all of Singapore’s tourism markets in the fourth quarter of 2019.
If China further eases its restrictions to allow its citizens to travel, SIA could enjoy a further boost as more Chinese head towards Singapore for a holiday.
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Disclaimer: Royston Yang does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
