Romania's Fondul Proprietatea moves into small profit in third quarter, ups net assets value

The rising price of stock owned by Romanian Fondul Proprietatea helped the fun increase its net asset value by 1.7 percent at the end of September this year, to some EUR 2.8 billion on September 30 this year, compared to end- June 2012. The price per share for the Fund, which is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, was RON 0.9476 (just under EUR 0.21 ) on the last day of Q3. The Fund's manager Franklin Templeton Investment Management gives rising prices for stock owned by the Fund, particularly OMV Petrom, as largely responsible for the increase in net asset value. The unaudited net profit for Q3 2012 was around EUR 150,000, or RON 0.7 million, which was an improvement on the third quarter last year, when the Fund posted a net loss of over EUR 1.8 million (RON 7.9 million). Net profit for the January to September nine month period was around EUR 129 million (RON 574.6 million), a 7.3 percent increase on the first three quarters of 2011. Total shareholder equity also rose 1.6 percent, totaling EUR 2.73 billion at the end of September. The discount of the share price to net asset value was 44.3 percent end- September 2012. In Q3 2012, the discount ranged between 42.9 percent and 60.7 percent. The secondary listing of Fondul Proprietate on the Warsaw Stock Exchange is still awaiting regulatory changes necessary on the Polish side before the listing can go ahead. As a result, there will be a shareholder meeting on November 23, where an extension of the timetable for Warsaw Stock Exchange listing will probably be agreed. As of September 30 the Fondul Proprietatea's portfolio included stakes in 69 companies, 25 listed and 44 unlisted. The fund’s portfolio is focused on the electrical energy sector, oil and natural gas – around 88 percent of its net assets. The biggest unlisted company in its portfolio of shares is Hidroelectrica, while the biggest listed company where Fondul Proprietatea owns shares is OMV Petrom. Fondul Proprietatea was created in 2005 as a joint stock company with a special purpose to provide compensation to people whose real estate assets had been confiscated by the Romanian state during the communist regime and who can no longer receive restitution in kind. The Romanian investment fund posted a profit of around EUR 128 million in 2011, and is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, symbol FP. editor@romania-insider.com