Mid-caps steal the show from blue chips
Greek stocks edged up yesterday, with mid-caps leading and offsetting the losses of some blue chips and of small-caps. The Athens Stock Exchange’s general index gained 0.08 percent to 3.280.28 points, but decliners outnumbered winners by a hefty margin. The blue chip FTSE/ASE-20 index shed 0.29 percent, mid-caps gained 0.95 percent and small-caps declined 0.21 percent. The banking index ended 1.70 percent lower but ATE bank outperformed with gains of 7.83 percent after investment bank UBS gave it a «buy 2» recommendation, setting a price target at 7.0 euros. ATE closed at 4.68 euros. The three biggest lenders came under strong selling pressure, with Eurobank shedding 2.71 percent, Alpha 1.88 percent and National 1.43 percent. Oil refineries continued their recent steep ascent, with Motor Oil surging 3.72 percent to a new year-high and Hellenic Petroleum adding 2.08 percent. Gaming firm OPAP advanced 2.90 percent, the Public Power Corporation added 2.17 percent, Intracom 2.17 percent and Duty Free Shops 1.76 percent. Turnover totaled 172.14 million euros, of which 79.9 million was accounted for the four most heavily traded shares, OPAP and banks ATE, Alpha and Eurobank.
