Arabtec Gains Most in June After Winning Contract: Dubai Mover

Arabtec Holding PJSC, the company building the Abu Dhabi branch of the Louvre, jumped the most this month after a venture led by it won a 4 billion-dirham ($1.1 billion) contract.

The stock climbed 3.9 percent, the biggest gain since May 30, to close at 2.12 dirhams in Dubai, bringing the advance this year to 14 percent. About 46 million shares traded, or 2.1 times the three-month daily average, making the company the third most-traded stock in Dubai’s benchmark index.

Arabtec said it won the contract from Aldar Properties PJSC’s unit to develop the Abu Dhabi Plaza in Astana, Kazakhstan. Construction on the mixed-use development includes five towers and is due to be completed in 2017.

The stock “is reacting to the positive announcement about winning this big contract,” said Fadi Al Said, a Dubai-based senior fund manager at ING Investment Management.

United Arab Emirates construction projects are picking up, with Arabtec winning contracts to build the branch of the French museum, an airport terminal in Abu Dhabi and an earlier, 243 million-dirham deal from Emaar Properties PJSC.

The contract is Arabtec’s third this month after it sealed a $629 million deal on a property project in Jordan and an 810 million-dirham order to build a five-star hotel and serviced apartment tower in Dubai.

The company may post an 87 increase in profit this year to 260 million dirhams, according to the mean estimate of 12 analysts, data compiled by Bloomberg shows. One analyst recommend investors buy Arabtec, while six say hold and nine say sell, according to the data.