A group of New Zealand and Australian...

A group of New Zealand and Australian investors has increased its holdings in Smith International, the Newport Beach oil field drill-bit manufacturer, from 32.1% to 33.4%, according to documents released by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Industrial Equity (Pacific) Ltd., a Hong Kong-based investment firm controlled by New Zealand financier Ronald Brierley, purchased 346,400 shares of Smith between March 3 and July 8 for $2.89 million. The investment group, Smith’s largest shareholder, began acquiring shares in October, 1986, and has been steadily building its position in the company, which emerged from bankruptcy in January. “I don’t know what their ultimate goal is, but I think they’ll continue to purchase our stock from time to time,” said Robert Gubrud, treasurer of Smith. Smith stock closed Wednesday at $9 a share, unchanged for the day.