UOB Kay Hian Alpha Picks gain 17.7% in July, beating STI

The Alpha Picks beat the STI by 12.4 percentage points on an equal-weighted basis.

UOB Kay Hian’s Alpha Picks portfolio delivered a 17.7% MoM return in July 2025, significantly outperforming the Straits Times Index (STI), which rose 5.3% over the same period.

According to the brokerage’s strategy report, the Alpha Picks beat the STI by 12.4 percentage points on an equal-weighted basis and by 0.7 percentage points on a market cap-weighted basis.

The strong performance was driven primarily by small- and mid-cap names, including iFAST, Frencken, and China Sunsine, which rose 37.3%, 33.9%, and 28.4% respectively.

These gains came amid renewed optimism in the Singapore market, fuelled by better-than-expected U.S. economic data, easing trade concerns, and the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s upcoming $5b Equity Market Development Programme (EDQP), which is expected to be deployed in the second half of 2025.

For the August rebalancing, UOB Kay Hian added three new stocks to its Alpha Picks portfolio: Hong Leong Asia, which is expected to benefit from strong construction activity in Singapore and Malaysia; Marco Polo Marine, supported by high charter rates and vessel utilisation; and CSE Global, backed by a robust and growing orderbook.

At the same time, iFAST and Sheng Siong Group were removed after booking gains of 40.7% and 19.3% respectively.

The brokerage noted that 10 out of 14 stocks in the portfolio are non-index names, positioning the picks to benefit from future inflows under the EDQP.

It added that continued strength in small- and mid-cap stocks, along with targeted stock selection, has helped drive consistent outperformance over the past several months.