Top 5 Singapore stocks to watch in September 2023
Analysts say these five Singapore stocks are among the ones to watch this month. Here are their insights.
Top 5 Singapore shares to watch in September 2023
| Company (Ticker) | Current share price* | 12-month price target** | Upside potential |
| ComfortDelGro (SGX: C52) | S$1.25 | S$1.49 | 19.2% |
| SingTel (SGX: Z74) | S$2.37 | S$3.06 | 29.1% |
| SATS (SGX: S58) | S$2.57 | S$2.93 | 14.0% |
| SingPost (SGX: S08) | S$0.49 | - | - |
| SGX (SGX: S68) | S$9.56 | S$9.59 | 0.31% |
*as of 31 August 2023
**SGX StockFacts data as of 31 August 2023
ComfortDelGro (SGX: C52)
ComfortDelGro shares hit 10-month high in August 2023 on the back of a bull run that started in June.
The transport company, which owns 34,000 buses, taxis, and rental vehicles, posted a revenue of S$1.86 billion in the first half of 2023, on par with the S$1.84 billion recorded a year ago.
Profit after tax and minority interest (PATMI), however, came in at S$78.5 billion, 319% lower than the S$115.3 million from the first half of 2022. This was mainly due to higher operating costs, the group said.
The group has declared an interim dividend of S$0.029 per share, which represents a dividend payout ratio of 80% of PATMI.
The group also updated its dividend policy to pay out at least 70% of PATMI going forward, up from 50% previously. This is ‘to provide more certainty to shareholders and to better reflect the group’s actual dividend payout ratio’, it said.
Following the results, CIMB, OCBC, Maybank, and UOB analysts raised their price targets on ComfortDelGro shares to S$1.47, S$1.31, S$1.50, and S$1.56 respectively.
SingTel (SGX: Z74)
SingTel shares have gathered a consensus rating of ‘outperform’ alongside a 12-month stock price target of S$3.06.
The price target equates to a 28.6% upside potential from the telco’s last traded price of S$2.38 on 30 August 2023.
The group recently held its Investor Day, where it shared key business goals for the next three years, including the improvement of return on invested capital to low double-digits by the end of FY2026.
It intends to do this by increasing cost synergies as well as reducing its capital intensity ratio through better management of its 5G rollout and more prudent spending.
UOB, CIMB and Maybank’s equity research teams have rated SingTel shares a ‘buy’.
Maybank analysts named SingTel as their top telco pick, citing the group’s ‘comfortable’ net debt/earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) as a main factor.
They added that Singtel ‘will be able’ to pay out dividends at ‘the top end’ of its usual payout policy for FY2024 to FY2026.
SATS (SGX: S58)
SATS' share price fell by nearly 10% in August 2023.
The group posted a three-fold increase in revenue in its latest reporting quarter (first quarter of FY2024). This was the first quarter where the results of Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), acquired in April 2023), were included.
Group revenue increased to S$1.2 billion in 1Q FY24 from S$375.5 million in 1Q FY23, due primarily to revenue contribution from WFS and increase in flights handled, which has recovered to 81% of pre-pandemic levels.
With the acquisition of WFS, SATS saw a 215% year-on-year (YoY) increase in flights handled to 145,900 and a 205% increase in cargo volumes YoY to 1.8 million tonnes. Meals served in aviation increased 120% from a year ago to 12 million in tandem with travel recovery.
CIMB’s research team raised its SATS share price target to S$2.86 from S$2.60 following the group’s results while keeping a ‘hold’ rating.
The stock, which is down 6.3% year-to-date, has an overall rating of ‘neutral’ and average target price of S$2.93, based on SGX StockFacts data on 30 August 2023.
Singapore Post (SGX: S08)
Singapore Post's share price has fallen over 8% since the start of the year.
The postal service group saw its revenue for the first quarter of FY2023/2024 drop by 15% YoY to S$404 million, with both its international and domestic post and parcel businesses in decline.
Despite the company’s slower performance, OCBC analysts recently raised their target price on the postal service company’s shares to S$0.54 (from S$0.53) and rating to ‘buy’.
The analysts did find SingPost’s expanding Australia business to be a ‘bright spot’, stating that ‘much of the growth’ was ‘organic in nature’.
‘We await on the sidelines for further clarity on the structural solutions proposed to tackle the structural decline in SingPost’s domestic post and parcel business,’ the analysts wrote, adding that they expect the group’s share price to ‘remain range-bound in the meantime’.
Singapore Exchange (SGX: S68)
The latest analyst sentiments published by SGX StockFacts show a consensus rating of ‘neutral’ on Singapore Exchange (SGX) shares alongside a share price target of S$9.66.
SGX reported a net profit of S$503 million for FY2023, up 10.3% from the previous year’s S$456. Total revenue also rose 8.7% to S$1.19 billion, mainly driven by derivatives revenue which increased 27.2%.
Despite the improved performance, OCBC lowered its fair value estimate on the stock to S$10.16 a share from S$10.20 previously, citing ‘modest growth expectations’ for FY2024 and FY2025.
Sembcorp ‘continues to pivot in the right direction towards renewables’, while ‘its ability to deliver higher return on equity should support the performance’ of the overall share price.
UOB analysts maintained a ‘hold’ call on SGX shares but raised target price to S$10.46 (from S$10.28).
SGX shares are up 3% in 2023.
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