IC Insider.com — Page 1225

Paramount at new high of $4

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Sika one of the brands tcarried by Paramount

Activity on the Junior Market closed with 7 securities traded, and ending with 124,770 units changing hands, valued at $269,308 while Paramount Trading ended at a new high of $4. The JSE Junior Market Index climbed 11.99 points to close at 725.69, with the prices of 2 stocks advancing and none declining.
At the close of the market, there were 5 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 3 stocks with offers that were lower. The junior market ended with 5 securities closing with no bids to buy and there were 5 securities that had no stocks being offered for sale.
Stocks trading in the junior market are, Lasco Manufacturing closing with 20,000 shares as the price climbed 8 cents to $1.27,Paramount Trading ended trading with 10,000 shares while gaining 78 cents to close at an all-time high of $4,

Blue Power ended trading with 2,350 shares trading at $6.50, Lasco Financial ending with 14,798 shares changing hands at $1.15, Derrimon Trading had 100 shares trading at $2.04, Eppley 9.5% preference shares closed with 10,000 shares changing hands to close $6 and General Accident ending with 67,522 shares trading at $1.65.

Odeon closure to boost Palace’s profit

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Carib cinema, the largest money generator for Palace

Palace Amusement Company reported a profit of $2 million in the December quarter, compared to a $9 million loss in the previous year and $5.3 million in the half year to the end of 2014, up from a loss of a $6.5 million in the previous year.
The improved profit out turn comes from flat revenues in the quarter but down from 7 percent for the six months. But profit should get a big boost with the close of the Odeon Cinema in Mandeville. The Mandeville cinema had revenues of nearly $23 million in the six months to December 2013 and $10.7 million in the first quarter of 2014, there was no income in the December quarter. Odeon also contributed over $4.6 million to losses in the half year versus $5.7 million in the 2013 period. In 2013 fiscal year the company lost $17 million or nearly $12 per share in the Mandeville operation. Some assets at that cinema was sold off, resulting in gain on sale of fixed assets of $2.3 million reflected in other income.
The segment results suggest that box office, the main revenue generator is a loss leader, as profit is coming only as result of advertising income of $23 million and other income of $5 million for the half year. This situation is unlikely to change even with higher gate receipts in the second half of the year. The segment numbers also indicate that the revenues from this area is contributing more in 2014 as percentage of box office sales than in 2013 and 2012. In 2014 the two Kingston cinemas raked in 43 percent from confectionary sales, up from 41 and 42 percent respectfully, while Montego Bay moved from 37 percent to 38 percent. For the financial year ending June 2012, the ratios were 40 percent, 43 percent and 39 percent respectively.

Going forward Palace is likely to benefit from increase in ticket prices implemented at the end of 2014 and lower utilities cost, with a fall in the price of oil and by extension electricity cost. In 2013 fiscal year utilities cost $65 million, but that would include water light and telephones, regardless there should be a few million dollars shaved off cost.
Gross profit margin jumped by 35 percent in the December quarter, from 17 percent to 23 percent, partially helped by the closure of the Mandeville cinema, and improved by 12 percent, for the year to December, as the margin moved to 23 percent, from 24 percent in 2013. Administrative expenses were flat for the last quarter and up slightly for the year to date.
Interest bearing debt is down to $27 million, cash is at $70 million but working capital is only $12 million.

Filed Under: Company News, Company Results Tagged With: Odeon, Palace Amusement

Agostini’s acquires Facey in Barbados

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Agostini’s Limited, a Trinidad and Tobago listed company said on Friday that it acquired all the shares in Facey Trading a fast moving consumer goods Barbadian company.
Facey Trading is a distribution business operating in Barbados and was owned by Facey Group with headquarters in Jamaica. Paul Scott of Facey Group, confirm the sale to Agostini’s. They approached us with an offer and we decided to sell, we sold the business but kept the property which is leased to the new owners of the business Scott, confirmed in an interview with IC Insider. It would appear that the size and state of the Barbadian economy played a role in the decision to sell. Facey Group continues to operate in Barbados in the IT and telecom phone card sector Scott said.
Agostini’s reported profit of TT$27 million for the first quarter to December 2014 from revenues of TT$408 million compared with profit of $27 million from revenues of $378 million in the 2013 period. For the year to September 2014 revenues came in at $1.36 billion resulting on full year’s profit of $80.5 million. Earnings per share for the quart was 46 cents and $1.36 for the full year. The stock last traded at $17.60. Agostini’s is involved in pharmaceutical, personal care, food and construction product distribution.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Company News, General Business News Tagged With: Agostini's, Facey Group

JSE trading data at 12.15PM

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

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Trading on Monday on the Jamaica Stock exchange is slow. the chart below shows the bids, offers and last traded prices as at 12.15 February 16.

Filed Under: JSE Main Market, Stock Market

JSE trading data – Monday 11.30

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Trading on Monday on the Jamaica Stock exchange is slow. the chart below shows the bids, offers and last traded prices as at 11.30.

Filed Under: JSE Main Market, Stock Market

JSE trade data – 9.45 Tuesday

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica Stock Exchange trading data as of 9.45 on Tuesday February 17, 2015. only three stocks traded so far.

Filed Under: JSE Main Market, Stock Market

Profits up 28% at Jamaican Teas

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

The Orchid property being developed that should add to Jamaican Teas’ profits in 2015 & 2016.

Jamaican Teas made profit of $27.5 million in the December quarter, representing a 28 percent increase from similar period in the prior year and flow from a 16 percent increase in sales to $319 million.
Sales were helped by 91 percent jump in exports, moving from $55 million to $103 million. The increase in exports, relate mainly to supplies to the US market and is partially due to the appointment of a new Distributor for the North East USA and expect that this will result in further improvement in sales. Revenues for the group, in the prior year, included $21.75 million in Real Estate sales. Excluding these sales, revenues would be up 26 percent for the quarter. Group sales also benefited from the launch of four new products during the period. Sales for Supermarkets are up 9 percent compared to the comparative quarter, in 2013, however, profits are flat. The jointly owned Supermarket in Montego Bay showed a reduction in losses which was helped by certain actions taken to reduce cost in 2014.
Gross profit margin increased to 24.3 percent from 24 percent in 2013, while gross profit increased 16 percent to $62 million but cost rose in other areas, with marketing climbing 24 percent to $7.3 million, administration by only 4 percent to $25.5 million and finance used to generate revenues in the period, is up 14 percent to $6.2 Million.

Property Development| The group has completed construction of more than 50 percent of units in phase 1 of the development in Yallahs, St Thomas. Approximately a half of the units in the first phase have been sold, delivery to the purchasers should start in April. The group should enjoy increased profits from this development which should start reflecting in the June quarter.
Borrowed funds stand at $320 million including long term debt of $228 million and equity capital at $660 million.
Barring any unforeseen developments, 2015 could produce the best financial performance far. The stock which is now at $2.55 seems to have much room for growth.

Filed Under: Buy Rated, Company News, Company Results Tagged With: Jamaican Teas, Orchid Estate

Profit up 137% for RJR in Q3

February 16, 2015 by IC Insider.com

TVJ one of RJR’s subsidaries

IC Buy Rated Radio Jamaica enjoyed one of its better years in recent times, with a big 137 percent jump in profit after tax to end at $102 million for the December 2014 quarter and an increase of 119 percent to $127 million for the nine months to the end of 2014, but the out turn for the full year to March 2015, will fall well below the record of $221.6 million profit made in the 2010 financial year.
The major improvement should be great news to shareholders who have seen the price of the stock tumble to a low of $1 per share last year, as profit melted away with sluggish revenues growth. The final quarter based on history, is likely to be a small profit at best, hence investors should not be looking at too much more in profits when the financial year ends. Earnings per share ended at 29 cents for the quarter and 32 cents for the nine months.

Gross profit margin improved in both the quarter and year to date, versus the prior year as sales grew 16 percent to $590 million in the quarter and 10 percent in the nine months, to reach $1.4 billion. Other revenue jumped sharply in the quarter due to foreign exchange gains, management states. Gross profit also increased at a faster pace than sales revenues. Cost increases were kept to 8 percent in the December quarter and 11 percent for the nine months.
RJR is in a healthy financial state with cash funds amounting to $130 million, loans of $2036 million, working capital of $565 million and equity capital of $1.3 billion.
The stock last traded at $1.10 on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday.

Filed Under: Company News, Company Results Tagged With: Radio Jamaica, RJR

Is Carreras set for price rise?

February 14, 2015 by IC Insider.com

A price increase cannot be far away for cigarettes sold by Carreras, with margins under pressure flowing mainly from slippage in the value of the Jamaican dollar taking a toll on the margins, since the last price increase in 2013.
With the squeeze in margin, sales also fell in the December quarter by 11 percent, bringing the year to date sales increase to only 5 percent. Cost slipped 1 percent in the December quarter, with a sharp reduction of 57 percent in sales and marketing cost for the quarter and 24 percent for the year to December. Administrative cost jumped 22 percent for the quarter and 16 percent for the nine months. The decline in sales may just be a normalisation in sales. In the past, there was speculation around the end of each year that the company will increase the price of cigarettes which encouraged the trade to stockpile ahead of such price movements and profit from it.
Carreras has entered into an agreement to sell the factory location that it operates from in Spanish Town to Kingston. Cost is expected to decline as a result and should ease some of the pressure on the bottom line. Those savings will be inadequate to cover the fall in gross profit suffered in the December quarter of more than $220 million.
At the end of the year the cigarette marketers, reported profit of $763 million for the quarter and $1.97 billion for the nine months to December earnings per share for the quarter amounted to $1.57 and $4.05 for the nine months and is on target to hey close to $6 per share from continuing operations. During 2013 the company booked a large gain for interest due on debt owed to them by the tax authorities. Investors should expect high dividend payment and periodic spurt in profits after the company adjust prices higher. Price has been on the move since bottoming at $32 last year and is now at $44 but seems headed higher in the months ahead as interest rates continue to fall.

Filed Under: Company News, Company Results Tagged With: Carreras

Jamaica’s economy barely delivering jobs

February 14, 2015 by IC Insider.com

Image courtesy of koko-tewan/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Jamaica unemployment rate eased in September, according to Data put out by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Satin) but remained at elevated levels at 14.2 percent compared to 14.9 percent in October 2013. The number of unemployed persons declined by 7,800 (4.0 percent) moving from 194,000 in October 2013 to 186,200 in October 2014.
The slow growth in the numbers on newly employed is a direct result of the low growth performance in the local economy as current government policy drives down demand for many goods and services in the country as government maintains the target of a balance fiscal operation.
Statin said the unemployment rate for males declined from 10.6 percent to 9.9 percent and for females from 20.0 percent to 19.4 percent.

“The number of persons in the Labour Force was 1,310,700, an increase of 6,200 (0.5 percent) above the 1,304,500 recorded in September 2013” Statin said.
The number of persons employed according to the latest data for 2014 is 1,124,500 persons, 14,000 (1.3 percent) more than the 1,110,500 recorded in September 2013, the report indicated. The composition continues to show much more male employment than female, with 645,900 males and 478,600.
According to the report the largest increases in the number of employed persons occurred in the groups ‘Wholesale & Retail, Repair of Motor Vehicle & Equipment’ and ‘Agriculture, Hunting, Forestry & Fishing’. The number of persons employed in the group ‘Wholesale & Retail, Repair of Motor Vehicle & Equipment’ increased by 11,700 (5.5 percent) while the group ‘Agriculture, Hunting, Forestry & Fishing’ increased by 7,800 (3.9 percent).