KUALA LUMPUR (July 1): Brokers are demanding cash upfront payments for the purchase of Artroniq Bhd (KL:ARTRONIQ), APB Resources Bhd (KL:APB), Notion VTec Bhd (KL:NOTION) and YNH Property Bhd (KL:YNH) shares.

Artroniq and Notion VTec's warrants — Artroniq-WA and NOTION-WD — are also affected.

“Effective June 28, there will be a suspension of share buying for the following counters: Artroniq, Artroniq-WA, APB, Notion, Notion-WD,” Apex Securities informed its clients in a note. Clients will be temporarily prohibited from buying these shares unless they have the full cash amount available in their accounts at the time of the transaction, said the broker.

Likewise, Kenanga Investment Bank and CGS International implemented cash upfront requirements for these stocks starting Monday. Kenanga said the cash upfront requirements were imposed for non-margin accounts.

The shares of APB Resources and YNH Property declined on Monday, while Notion VTec ended the day slightly higher after dropping as much as 11.2% in the morning.

APB Resources dropped 10 sen or 5.75% to close at RM1.64, translating into a market capitalisation of RM185.11 million.

YNH Property, whose chairman and largest shareholder is prominent investor Datuk Dr Yu Kuan Chon, fell two sen or 3.67% to 52.5 sen, giving the company a market value of RM275.2 million. Yu, who is being sued by the Secrities Commission Malaysia for alleged market rigging and manipulation involving shares of Shangri-La Hotels (M) Bhd (KL:SHANG) in 2018, holds 32.6% in YNH Property.

Notion VTec, meanwhile, inched up two sen or 0.98% to close at RM2.07, giving it a market value of RM1.07 billion. The counter went as low as RM1.82 in morning trades. Its warrant Notion-WD , meanwhile, slipped one sen or 0.56% to RM1.76.

Artroniq rose one sen or 5.13% to 20.5 sen, giving it a market value of RM81.54 million. The counter just hit a low of 19.5 sen on June 28. Its warrant Artroniq-WA, closed unchanged at four sen.

While Notion VTec has been on an uptrend, Artroniq, APB Resources, and YNH Property faced heavy selling pressure earlier this year.

Artroniq's share price has fallen over 76% since the start of the year, while APB Resources declined more than 36%, hitting a low of RM1.66 on Jan 7.

YNH Property, which is facing delays in the sale of its 163 Retail Park and a 5.098-acre freehold land in Desa Sri Hartamas to Sunway Group, has seen its share price tumble over 86%.

Notion VTec was just flagged for unusual market activity (UMA) by Bursa Malaysia last month after its share price surged to RM1.98, which was at the time the highest level seen since April 2010. Year to date, the stock has gained over 610%.

In response to the UMA query, Notion VTec attributed the surge to strong financial recovery, a sector turnaround, and a positive analyst outlook.