Australia Stocks: Babcock, Paperlinx, Perilya, Santos, Tishman

By Shani Raja

Aug. 21 (Bloomberg) -- The S&P/ASX 200 Index declined 49.20 points, or 1 percent, to 4,880.30 at 12:45 p.m. in Sydney. The broader All Ordinaries Index lost 42.10 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,955.40, while the futures index expiring in September dropped 0.5 percent to 4,857.

Babcock & Brown Ltd. (BNB AU) slumped 90 cents, or 26 percent, to A$2.55, a record low. The company said Phil Green quit as chief executive officer, as the Australian infrastructure manager posted its first drop in profit. Babcock & Brown Wind Partners (BBW AU), a wind energy producer managed by Babcock & Brown Ltd., plunged 24 cents, or 18 percent, to a record low A$1.07.

Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group (BBI AU), the energy and transport company managed by Babcock & Brown Ltd., soared 6 cents, or a record 13 percent, to 51 cents, the index's best performer. Babcock Infrastructure said today that it decided to suspend its distribution reinvestment plan.

Brambles Ltd. (BXB AU) fell 9 cents, or 1.2 percent, to a record low A$7.32 after Credit Suisse Group cut the company's rating to ``neutral'' from ``outperform.''

Cabcharge Australia Ltd. (CAB AU), a Sydney-based taxi payment system operator, lost 64 cents, or 9 percent, to A$6.51, the lowest in more than two years. The company, which reported net profit of A$59 million in fiscal 2008, said it's scrapping plans to enter the bus building business due to difficult global economic conditions.

Centennial Coal Co. (CEY AU), Australia's fourth-largest coal producer, rose for a second day, gaining 14 cents, or 2.8 percent, to A$5.16, the highest since July 31. Centennial yesterday reported an almost threefold gain in second-half profit on surging prices for the fuel.

Iluka Resources Ltd. (ILU AU), the world's biggest zircon producer, lost 23 cents, or 5.2 percent, to A$4.20, the lowest since July 17. Iluka said first-half profit plunged 62 percent because of gains in the Australian dollar and after a natural gas outage cut production.

Macquarie Infrastructure Group (MIG AU), Australia's largest developer of toll roads, dipped 13 cents, or 4.9 percent, to A$2.50, the lowest in almost a month. The company said net profit for the year to June 30 fell to A$767.3 million from A$1.7 billion the previous year.

OZ Minerals Ltd. (OZL AU), the world's second-largest zinc mining company, fell 17 cents, or 9.3 percent, to A$1.66, the most since Aug. 5, after dropping consideration of a share buyback in order to focus on acquisitions and mine development.

Paperlinx Ltd. (PPX AU), the world's largest paper distributor, declined 26 cents, or 12 percent, to A$1.85, the most since 2005. The company reported a 22 percent fall in second-half earnings as demand declined in Europe and North America and a rising Australian dollar cut the value of its overseas sales.

Perilya Ltd. (PEM AU) gained 2 cents, or 4.4 percent, to 47 cents, the fifth-biggest gainer on the index. The Australian zinc and lead producer will reduce output and cut more than half of the staff at its biggest mine because of lower zinc and lead prices.

QBE Insurance Group Ltd. (QBE AU), Australia's biggest property and casualty insurer, dropped 71 cents, or 3 percent, to A$23.20, the most since Aug. 1. QBE said first-half profit fell 7 percent on declining equity markets and gains in the nation's currency.

Santos Ltd. (STO AU), Australia's third-biggest oil and gas producer, leapt A$1.63, or 9.5 percent, to A$18.83, the second biggest gainer on the index. Santos posted a 58 percent gain in first-half profit after prices rose, and said it intends to move into electricity production to speed the development of gas reserves.

Sunshine Gas Ltd. (SHG AU) rose 56 cents, or 26 percent, to A$2.76, the most since January. Sunshine yesterday agreed to a takeover offer from Queensland Gas Co. (QGC AU), which lost 14 cents, or 3.2 percent, to A$4.18, the most since Aug. 5.

Tishman Speyer Office Fund (TSO AU), a trust that invests in and manages office properties in the U.S., tumbled 15 cents, or 12 percent, to a record low A$1.06, the third-worst performer on the index. The company reported an after-tax loss of A$112 million for the year ended June 30, compared with A$263.6 million profit the previous year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Shani Raja in Sydney at sraja4@bloomberg.net.