Mexico's Cicsa Shares Extend Gains On Bronco Drilling Deal
23 Settembre 2009 - 9:05AM
Dow Jones News
Shares of construction firm Carso Infraestructura y Construccion
SAB (CICSA.MX) extended their gains Tuesday, rising more than 8%
after it announced a joint venture with Bronco Drilling Company
Inc. (BRNC) to expand its oil services business in Latin
America.
The B-1 shares of Cicsa, as the company is known, were nearly
8.3% higher, at 7.58 pesos ($0.57) on the Mexican Stock Exchange,
less than an hour from the close, adding to Monday's 4.8% gain.
The shares are up 3.7% so far this year, compared to a 32% rise
in Mexico's benchmark IPC stock index.
"The poor performance of the shares isn't justified, having
posted important growth in sales and Ebitda of 14% and 106%
respectively in the last 12 months," Ixe Casa de Bolsa analysts
said in a note.
Cicsa, a unit of conglomerate Grupo Carso SAB (GCARSO.MX)
controlled by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, said Monday that it
had reached an agreement to buy a 60% stake in Bronco Drilling's
local unit.
The joint venture, Bronco Drilling MX, will provide oil and gas
drilling services in Mexico and other Latin American countries.
Bronco Drilling MX currently has six drilling rigs, ancillary
equipment, and two drilling contracts with Mexican state oil
monopoly Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex.
Bronco said it will contribute three more rigs to the venture
when those contracts are completed.
"Cicsa will show even more aggressive growth once it
consolidates the operations of this subsidiary," Ixe analysts
wrote.
Slim, whose holdings include telecommunications firms and a
major bank, has increased his exposure to the oil industry in
recent years through Cicsa, whose Swecomex subsidiary builds
offshore platforms for Pemex.
-By Ken Parks, Dow Jones Newswires, 52-55-5001-5723,
ken.parks@dowjones.com