The market was weighed down by Contact’s $525m capital raise to help fund renewable energy projects, and a slump in the property sector as the housing market remains soft.

Greg Smith, investment specialist with Generate, said, “We saw selling in other energy stocks to fund the Contact raise, which is at quite a discount.

“The latest REINZ data shows the housing market is as soggy as the weather, and it remains to be seen when and if it joins the broader economic recovery.”

Smith said the recovery is “pretty uneven – card spending was down 1.1% in January, back to the level in September. Consumers are still in a very selective place.”

Freightways was up 9c to $14.61 after reporting a strong half-year result with revenue increasing 8.5% to $718.15m and net profit rising 17.2% to $52.46m. Operating earnings (ebitda) were up 12.2% to $96.5m.

The express delivery company, a bellwether stock for the New Zealand economy, is paying an interim dividend of 21c per share on April 1, an increase of 10.5%.

Freightways said, “We expect a steady improvement in same-customer volumes in the second half of the 2026 financial year, particularly in New Zealand, driven by a level of economic recovery.”

Global infant milk supplier a2 Milk was one of the day’s biggest movers, gaining 50c or 5% to $10.50 after reporting an 18.8% rise in revenue to $993.49m and 9.4% increase in net profit to $112.3m for the six months ending December. The share price hit an intraday high of $11.17.

It is paying an interim dividend of 11.5c a share on April 2.

A2 Milk’s revenue grew 13.6% in its main market of China, with the China label infant milk formula achieving record market share.

The company upgraded its full-year revenue growth guidance from low double-digit to mid double-digit per cent with improved operating earnings (ebitda) margin. A2 Milk said it is on track to achieve the $2b sales ambition this financial year – 12 months ahead of the plan.

Contact Energy, last traded at $9.59, reported a 43.9% increase in half-year net profit to $204.95m and 5.3% fall in revenue to $1.617 billion. It is paying an interim dividend of 16c a share on March 25.

However, Contact entered a trading halt before announcing the capital raise and development plans. Contact has also made an offer to buy the remaining 24.98% of King Country Energy for $47m.

Other stocks

Fellow energy stock Meridian was down 18c or 3.13% to $5.58, and Mercury declined 9c to $6.24.

The property sector on the NZX fell more than 2%. Argosy was down 3.5c or 2.94% to $1.15; Goodman Trust declined 5.5c or 2.87% to $1.86; and Investore shed 2.5c or 2.24% to $1.09.

Vital Healthcare Trust declined 5.5c or 2.76% to $1.94; Precinct Properties was down 3c or 2.59% to $1.13; and Stride eased 2c to $1.25.

Property for Industry, down 5c or 2.19% to $2.23, has sold two properties in New Plymouth and Christchurch for a combined total of $19.05m, representing a 1.06% increase on the most recent valuations.

Fletcher Building was down 9c or 2.48% to $3.54; Summerset declined 18c to $10.67; and Ryman Healthcare fell 14c or 5.36% to $2.47 – stocks that are also affected by the health of the housing market.

Infratil was down 28c to $10.94; Port of Tauranga declined 20c or 2.53% to $7.70; and Vista Group decreased 16c or 8.89% to $1.64.

Amongst the few gainers, Mainfreight was up $1 to $63; Vulcan Steel increased 16c or 2.06% to $7.94; and Winton Land gained 5.5c or 2.85% to $1.98.

Tourism Holdings, up 4c to $2.35, has a conditional agreement to sell its UK and Ireland assets to Portugal-based recreation vehicle rental company Indie Campers for an expected $58.3m.

The company said the timing of the transaction will negatively impact operating earnings by $1.1m in the second half of the 2026 financial year because of the loss of UK and Ireland high-season income in the fourth quarter.