Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Saudi Pension Fund Buys into SABIC Ahead of Earnings | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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RIYADH, (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s largest pension fund, the General Organisation of Social Insurance (GOSI), was listed as a 5 percent stake holder in Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) after Saturday’s trading close.

Data from Tadawul’s website on Sunday listed for the first time GOSI as among shareholders holding more than 5 percent in SABIC, the world’s most valuable petrochemical company by market value.

The data does not disclose previous stake held by GOSI nor the amount of new shares bought by the fund.

According to the bourse website, when a large sale order receives a price based on prevailing market conditions, the transaction does not get disclosed to the public.

Officials at Tadawul could not be reached for comment.

SABIC is due to announce its second-quarter earnings before July 21.

A 5 percent stake in SABIC is worth 13.43 billion riyals ($3.58 billion) based on Saturday’s closing price. SABIC closed 5.3 percent higher on Saturday.

Because of their sophistication, stock picks by institutional investors such as GOSI or the other state-run Public Pension Agency (PPA), the kingdom’s second-largest pension fund, offer an insight to their investment strategies, which can be instrumental for retail brokerage and individual investors.