Hallenstein stars as NZ stocks drift lower

The New Zealand sharemarket drifted lower in light trading, the highlight of the day being a strong result from clothing retailer Hallenstein Glasson.

Friday, September 26th 2025, 7:00PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 Index was 42.06 points or 0.32% lower at 13,111.73, with 30 million shares worth $134.1m trading.

There were 78 rises and 65 falls on the main board.

Trump rattles markets

In the big picture, there were renewed concerns about US tariffs after President Donald Trump said the Government would impose 100% tariffs on pharmaceutical products.

Across the Tasman, shares in CSL, Australia’s biggest healthcare manufacturer, dropped on the news before recovering ground.

Matt Goodson, managing director at Salt Funds, said F&P Healthcare, the local market’s biggest stock, looked to have been caught up in the tariff turmoil before rebounding to close 22c up at $36.50.

“It’s as clear as mud as to what the final outcomes (on tariffs) are going to look like,” Goodson said.

“And here’s some possibility here that, because the currently proclaimed tariffs by Trump are in front of the Supreme Court, there’s some risk that they find that he lacks the authority.

“There are three other acts under which the president can impose tariffs, so it looks like they’re just sort of setting the ground to do that."

Ryman to dual list

Elsewhere among the big-cap stocks, Ryman Healthcare, which this week confirmed it plans to dual-list on the ASX in October, gained 10c to $2.50.

An ASX foreign exempt listing is expected to provide streamlined compliance for Ryman while broadening access to Australian and international investors.

A2 price down and up

Shares in infant formula marketer a2 Milk were sharply lower at one point but ended the day down just 3c at $9.62.

“a2 Milk has had a very strong run, so it’s just pulling back from overbought levels,” Goodson said. “Its latest result was good but perhaps not good enough to justify the 20% share price run that it had."

Fonterra up

Fonterra’s units ended up 10c at $7.91, having more than doubled in price over the last two years.

The co-op this week reported a net profit of $1.08 billion, down slightly from the previous year due to a higher tax bill, but announced a strong dividend.

Fonterra has a big presence on the economy but only a small weighting on the benchmark index.

Hallensteins looking good

Hallenstein Glasson gained 5c to $8.95 but was off its highs after reporting a 14.4% lift in net profit to $39.4m for the year to Aug 1.

Goodson said the company had again proven to be “very good rag traders”.

“It’s an area of the market that’s notorious for someone going well for a year or two and then falling by the wayside.

“Hallensteins is focused on well-priced basics, and it seems to be extremely consistent at executing very well,” Goodson said.

Synlait gains

Synlait Milk, which reports its result on Monday, gained 1.5c to 70c.

The company, just under 20% owned by a2 Milk, announced that its new banking syndicate remained “highly supportive” of the company.

Insurance company Tower was up 1.5c to $1.73 after announcing a new partnership with Westpac NZ to provide general insurance products to the bank’s retail customers, from July 2026.

Goodson said the deal was “potentially very material”.

Tags: Market Close