KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 6): BIMB Securities has issued a "buy" call for Bursa Malaysia Berhad (KL:BURSA) with a target price of RM11.10, saying its weak share price offers an attractive opportunity for investors to accumulate the stock.

Despite the recent stock market decline, BIMB Securities believes Bursa will continue to benefit from market volatility, which supports its daily traded volume and value.

"We anticipate the equity market to remain robust for the rest of 2024, backed by the return of foreign investors, Federal Fund Rate (FFR) cuts, government fiscal reforms and improvements in corporate earnings performance," BIMB Securities said in a note on Tuesday.

On Monday, Bursa recorded a traded value of RM7,971.0 million, more than double that of the previous trading day (Aug 2: RM3,980.2 million).

Trading volume slightly exceeded its previous high of RM7,970.9 million on November 30, 2021, driven by a significant market selloff amid concerns about a potential US recession.

BIMB Securities reiterated its "buy" call on Bursa with a target price of RM11.10, pegged at 26 times price-earnings ratio (+1SD above the 10-year average PER) to 2025F earnings per share of 42.6 sen.

The FBM KLCI Index fell by 4.6% to close at 1,536 points on Monday, breaking below the 1,600-point level.

This trend was reflected across all its indices, with the five worst-performing indices being Property (-9.7%), Technology (-9.1%), Construction (-9.0%), Energy (-8.2%) and Industrial Products (-7.7%).

BIMB Securities maintained its average daily traded value forecasts for 2024F at RM3.3 billion, 2025F at RM3.6 billion and 2026F at RM3.9 billion.

Overall, BIMB Securities is confident that Bursa Malaysia will benefit from the anticipated market conditions and continues to see it as a valuable investment.

At the time of writing, Bursa's shares traded 25 sen or 2.8% lower at RM8.81, valuing the company at RM7.13 billion.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/node/721799