Gazprom shares fell to a record low amid new sanctions
The value of Gazprom's stock has plummeted to a low not seen in 16 years.
A continued slide in the indices is possible given the most recent set of anti-Russia penalties enacted by authorities in the European Union; it targets 54 individuals, 30 firms from Russia, China, and North Korea, along with 52 oil tankers and 32 businesses that produce items with both civilian and military applications.
Yesterday, on December 17th, at 4:30 PM, Moscow time, the stock’s value on the Moscow Exchange decreased to 106.1 rubles. The last instance of shares dipping below this mark was in January 2009, reaching 99.5 rubles, based on data from the trading platform.
By 5:13 PM, Moscow time, the price had recovered slightly to 106.5 rubles, remaining 2%, or 2.1 rubles, beneath the closing price from December 16.
According to analysts, the value of shares could decline amidst reports of US intentions to levy penalties against the Naftna Industrija Srbije (NIS), where Gazprom PJSC entities jointly possess 50% of the stock.
Furthermore, analysts suggest that EU sanctions imposed on December 16th on four executives from Russian gas industry subsidiaries may exert a detrimental influence.
Lukoil shares are performing more poorly, but this is attributed to a dividend gap. Experts are not forecasting any increase in the corporation’s asset value, pointing out that media reports that Ukraine is rejecting the extension of its agreement with Russia regarding gas transit to Europe could be putting pressure on the stock.
The contract concerning Russian gas provisions via Ukraine lapses on December 31 and is unlikely to be prolonged, analysts indicate. In addition, an arrangement pertaining to gas sales to Europe through TurkStream in January was not achieved. This indicates further decreases in Gazprom’s exports.
Experts opine that PJSC Gazprom has lately exhibited extremes in its dividend approach, sometimes declaring substantial dividends, while at other times declining to disburse them. This creates uncertainty among investors and considerably lessens the demand for its securities.
During trading on December 17 of the current year, the Moscow Exchange index re-established its yearly minimum, dropping below 2400 points once again.
The most significant losers during trading were Lukoil (-6.34%), Severstal (-3.41%) and RusHydro (-1.02%), whilst the most substantial gainers were Ozon (+1.77%), En+Group (+1.71%) and Polyus (+1.46%).
