Stocks closed at a seven month high at the close of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Main Market trading on Wednesday with the market rising higher than Tuesday, with NCB Financial fueling the gain with a rise of $8 price as the All Jamaica Composite Index ended just below the April 16 close of 427,779.79 points.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index surged 7,042.47 points to 427,204.28, the Main Index jumped 6,294.46 points to 389,845.50 and the JSE Financial Index added 2.61 points to settle at 103.23.
Trading ended with 44 securities changing hands compared to 42 on Tuesday and closed with the prices of 14 stocks rising, 17 declining and 13 remaining unchanged. The average PE ratio ended at 15.7 based on ICInsider.com’s forecast of 2020-21 earnings.
The market closed after an exchange of 16 percent more shares than on Tuesday, resulting in 16,137,399 shares trading for $724,067,008 compared to 13,931,581 units at $189,778,108 on Tuesday.
Grace Kennedy led trading with 29.6 percent of total volume after exchanging 4.77 million shares, followed by Transjamaican Highway with 21.9 percent for 3.53 million units. NCB Financial ended with 17.1 percent of the overall volume after trading 2.76 million units, with a value of $414 million and accounted for 57 percent of the market’s value and Sagicor Select Financial Fund closing with 5.6 percent of the volume as 1.4 million units traded.
The average trade amounts to 366,759 units at $16,456,068 for each security, compared to an average of 331,704 shares at $4,518,526 on Tuesday. The average trade for the month to date ended at 268,282 units at $5,122,619 for each security, in contrast to 259,701 units at $4,135,150 on Tuesday. Trading for October averaged 398,200 units at $4,622,532 .
The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows 10 stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close of the market, Barita Investments shed 30 cents to close at $84.50, in an exchange of 4,450 shares, Caribbean Cement dropped $5 to end at $54 trading 23,334 stock units, Eppley gained 50 cents to close at $20, after clearing the market with 29,227 units. First Rock Capital lost 50 cents, closing at $12, with 27,582 shares passing through the market, Jamaica Broilers Group fell $1.60 to $26.30, in exchanging 2,557 units, Key Insurance gained 95 cents to end at $8.15, after trading just one stock. Kingston Properties fell 48 cents to $7, with a transfer of 550 units, Kingston Wharves rose $1.90 to $48.90, in crossing the exchange with 255 units, MPC Caribbean Clean Energy declined by $4.99 to $145.01, with an exchange of 59 units. 
NCB Financial climbed $8 to $150, with 2,760,546 shares changing hands, Pan Jam Investment advanced by $2.84 to $64 after exchanging 11,719 units, Proven Investments declined by $2.14 in closing at $36.86, in trading 2,900 units. Salada Foods shed 79 cents to end at $27.50, with an exchange of 260 units, Scotia Group fell by $2.89 in closing at $45.06, with 172,829 shares changing hands and Supreme Ventures lost 65 cents to end at $15.35, after 27,135 stock units passed through the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
