Ariantec shares soar to near seven-year high

GROWING INTEREST: Price spike follows purchase of substantial stake by former Seloga director Samsudin


DATUK Samsudin Abu Hassan, a well-known corporate figure in the 1990s, yesterday emerged as a substantial shareholder in Ariantec
Global Bhd with a 5.25 per cent stake, a move that drove its shares up to an almost seven-year high.

The move came just three days after another businessman, Datuk Raymond Chan Boon Siew, also became a substantial shareholder in the information technology (IT) firm with a 5.1 per cent stake.

Chan had gained prominence in recent months after buying substantial stakes in other small companies, namely Harvest Court Industries Bhd, Naim Indah Corp Bhd and Metronic Global Bhd.

All three companies, and Ariantec, have seen a surge in trading volumes in recent months.



Samsudin bought some five million Ariantec shares in the open market yesterday, which pushed up his total holdings to 29.8 million shares, a stock exchange filing showed.

Ariantec’s share price rose by or five sen, or 28.6 per cent, to close at 22 sen, its highest since October 2005.

Some 436.6 million shares changed hands, making it the day’s most actively traded counter.

Metronic Global, which owns 13.15 per cent of Ariantec, was the second most active, gaining half a sen to 19.5 sen on 119.4 million shares.

Ariantec, a previously little-known firm that returned to the black last year with a net profit of RM145,000 after several years of losses, has seen a massive surge in its share price and volumes since the midle of last month.

Earlier on Tuesday, it was queried by the stock exchange for a 74 per cent jump in its share price, to which the company said it didn’t know the reason.

A stock exchange filing later showed that Chan had bought 26.5 million shares in the company, raising his total holdings to 29 million shares, or a 5.1 per cent stake.

“I don’t know what’s going on with this company. As far as I know, there’s nothing to warrant that kind of interest in it,” said the head of research of a local brokerage who declined to be named.

Bloomberg data shows that no analysts track the stock.

Ariantec’s share price has shot up by 389 per cent since mid-March while its average daily trading volume has surged to 134.6 million shares, compared with just 2.9 million shares before this year.

Samsudin was formerly a director of Seloga Holdings Bhd before he left in February 2010 following a boardroom tussle with another famed personality of the 1990s, Tan Sri Halim Saad.

Both were said to be linked to former finance minister Tun Daim Zainuddin.

Back then, Samsudin was associated with multiple companies like Landmarks Bhd, Bolton Properties Bhd, Peremba Bhd, Aokam Perdana and Mitrajaya Bhd.