Noble Group Limited has issued another statement last night to address some of the allegations made in the adverse Iceberg Research report. Noble also questions the purpose of Iceberg‟s report, saying that it would be normal to approach the group to discuss their concerns, rather than publish such a report shortly before its annual results announcement and just before a holiday period.

While some of the allegations have been largely addressed, we suspect investors may still adopt a cautious stance ahead of the long holiday break; we also note that Iceberg intends to issue more reports on Noble and that could continue to cast a nearterm pall over the stock.

As before, our rating and fair value are under review ahead of the group‟s 4Q14 results announcement on 26 Feb.

Source: OCBC Research - 18 Feb 2015