Investors hit pause on market rally. Find out why.

The S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 97.84 points, or 0.8 percent, to 11,751.29. Within the index, 18 stocks fell, 26 rose and six were unchanged. Turnover was $192.5 million.

Investors hit pause on a rally which saw the index gain 3.6 percent across the previous two days, after market darling A2 Milk reported a weaker than expected earning result.

The infant formula distributor, which posted more than a 30 percent jump in both full-year revenue and profit, said it continues to expect more growth this year and is looking for investment opportunities.

However, its share price fell 5.6 percent to $20.33 as many investors were disappointed the result wasn’t even stronger.