The Smart Investor
    Facebook Instagram
    Monday, January 30
    Facebook Instagram LinkedIn
    The Smart Investor
    • Home
    • About
      • About Us
      • Careers
    • Smart Investing
      • Getting Started
      • Investing Strategy
      • Smart Analysis
      • Smart Reads
    • Special Free Reports!
    • As Featured on BT
    • Our Services
      • Our Services
      • Subscribe now!
    • Login
    • Cart
    The Smart Investor
    Home»Blue Chips»3 Top Stocks to Watch for in December
    Blue Chips

    3 Top Stocks to Watch for in December

    We highlight three stocks that are worth watching out for this month.
    Royston YangBy Royston YangDecember 1, 20225 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email WhatsApp
    Man with Tie Wearing Luxury Watch
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email WhatsApp

    We’ve come to the final month of the year, and it’s been a roller-coaster journey for the stock market.

    The benchmark Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) hit highs of above 3,400 in both February and April, buoyed by news of border reopening and economic recovery.

    The bellwether index then crashed to a low of below 3,000 as the twin troubles of inflation and surging interest rates led to a wave of pessimism.

    Amid the volatility, there are still companies whose business has chugged along fine.

    These are the stocks that have sailed through the year and reported a good set of earnings thus far.

    You can also look forward to these businesses holding their own as 2023 rolls by.

    Three top stocks are on our radar for this month.

    Cortina Holdings (SGX: C41)

    Cortina is a luxury watch chain that started in 1972.

    The group has six boutiques in Singapore, nine in Malaysia, three in Thailand, five in Taiwan, and one each in both Hong Kong and Indonesia.

    Cortina sells a variety of Swiss luxury brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe, Panerai, Cartier, and Chopard.

    The group reported a robust set of earnings for its fiscal 2023’s first half (1H2023) ending 30 September 2022.

    Revenue jumped 25% year on year to S$406.9 million while net profit surged by 49% year on year to S$37.9 million.

    Cortina also generated a healthy free cash flow of S$36.4 million.

    This set of good results follows up from Cortina’s strong FY2022 financial numbers where the luxury watch retailer reported a 64% year on year surge in revenue and a 73% year on year jump in net profit to S$68.8 million.

    In line with the good results, the group paid out a final dividend of S$0.02, a special dividend of S$0.05, and a bonus special 50th-anniversary dividend of S$0.05.

    Total dividends came up to S$0.12 per share, giving the shares a trailing dividend yield of 3%.

    The group has plans to grow its customer base and improve the customer experience for both its Cortina and Sincere Watch boutiques. The latter was acquired by the group for S$84.7 million in March last year.

    The expansion will focus on Malaysia in the next 12 months and Cortina has revived the Sincere Haute Horlogerie concept in Singapore and intends to replicate it in Thailand in due course.

    ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited (SGX: C52)

    ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited, or CDG, is one of the world’s largest transport companies with a fleet size of around 34,000 buses, taxis, and rental vehicles.

    The group also operates 177 kilometres of light and heavy rail networks in Singapore and New Zealand.

    CDG released an encouraging business update for its fiscal 2022’s third quarter (3Q2022).

    Revenue rose 10.1% year on year to S$969.5 million while net profit climbed 32.9% year on year to S$34.3 million.

    Operating profit excluding non-recurring items surged by 49% year on year to S$59 million.

    However, if government reliefs are excluded, CDG would have seen operating profit more than double year on year to S$53.6 million.

    Last month, the transport giant reported encouraging business developments.

    The group, along with partner Engie SA (EPA: ENGI), was awarded two projects for the installation of electric vehicle charging points covering nearly 2,000 HDB car parks.

    Over in Australia, CDG snagged three metropolitan bus contracts in Sydney totalling S$1.7 billion and will run for between seven to eight years.

    Sembcorp Industries Ltd (SGX: U96)

    Sembcorp Industries Ltd, or SCI, is an energy and urban solutions provider.

    The group has an energy portfolio totalling 16.6 gigawatts (GW) comprising 7.1 GW of renewable energy capacity.

    For the first half of 2022 (1H2022), SCI reported a 45% year on year jump in revenue to S$4.8 billion.

    Core net profit excluding exceptional items soared more than a 10-fold year on year from S$46 million to S$490 million.

    An interim dividend of S$0.04 was declared and paid, double the S$0.02 paid out last year.

    SCI has been aggressively bulking up its renewables portfolio last month.

    The group carried out a total of three transactions that bring it closer to achieving its target of 10 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2025.

    The first was the acquisition of 795 MW of solar assets in China, while the second involved the purchase of Vector Green in India which added close to 600 MW of renewable capacity.

    The third acquisition was for 830 MW of renewable assets in China, thereby bringing the group’s gross installed capacity to 9.4 GW.

    How do you decide if a growth stock is worth your money? There is no shortage of stock ideas today, but is a particular stock suitable for you? Find out more in our latest FREE report, How To Find The Best US Growth Stocks For Your Portfolio. Click HERE to download the report for free now! 

    Follow us on Facebook and Telegram for the latest investing news and analyses!

    Disclaimer: Royston Yang does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.

    Yahoo
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email WhatsApp

    Related Posts

    Data Centre (Sunlight)

    5 Key Takeaways from Mapletree Industrial Trust’s Latest Business Update

    January 30, 2023
    Screen Showing Share Prices

    Get Smart: Why You Shouldn’t Focus on Share Prices Alone

    January 29, 2023

    Top Stock Market Highlights of the Week: Frasers Property Limited, Frasers Centrepoint Trust and China’s Reopening

    January 28, 2023
    Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Telegram
    • Careers
    • Disclaimer & Privacy Policy
    • Subscription Terms of Service
    © 2023 The Smart Investor. All Rights Reserved. The Smart Investor, thesmartinvestor.com.sg, an investment education website managed by The Investing Hustle Pte Ltd (Company Reg No. 201933459Z) is not licensed or otherwise regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, and in particular, is not licensed or regulated to carry on business in providing any financial advisory service. Accordingly, any information provided on this site is meant purely for informational and investor educational purposes and should not be relied upon as financial advice. No information is presented with the intention to induce any reader to buy, sell, or hold a particular investment product or class of investment products. Rather, the information is presented for the purpose and intentions of educating readers on matters relating to financial literacy and investor education. Accordingly, any statement of opinion on this site is wholly generic and not tailored to take into account the personal needs and unique circumstances of any reader. The Smart Investor does not recommend any particular course of action in relation to any investment product or class of investment products. Readers are encouraged to exercise their own judgment and have regard to their own personal needs and circumstances before making any investment decision, and not rely on any statement of opinion that may be found on this site.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.