Barita’s profit doubles

Fast out of the block, Barita Investments opens the earning season for the March quarter with a doubling of profits for the quarter and half year. Profit after tax rose from $509 million to $1.04 billion and from $1 billion in the half year ended March 2020 to $2.06 billion in 2021.
Revenues nearly doubled for the quarter to $2.05 billion from $1.13 billion in 2020 and from $2.26 billion last year to $4.05 billion in 2021. Fees and commission income surged from $182 million in the 2020 quarter to $898 million and foreign exchange gains jumped from just $19 million in 2020 March quarter to $650 million this year, while the half year’s figures saw a steep increase from just $106 million to $1.1 billion. Investment gains in the latest quarter fell to just $121 million compared to $599 million in 2020, while the half year saw a slight drop in 2021 to $791 million from $851 million.
Operating expenses rose 70 percent at a much slower pace than revenues to $794 million in the quarter from $468 million in 2020, for the half year cost increased 54 percent to $1.47 billion from $958 million to March 2020.
Earnings per share rose to 96 cents in the quarter from 62 cents in 2020 and from $1.24 last year to March to $1.90 in 2021.
Total assets are now $78.7 billion, up from $48.7 billion at the end of the year ago and from $70.7 billion at the end of September, last year and shareholders’ equity climbed from $14 4 billion in March 2020 to $28.7 billion in 2021. Pledged assets jumped from $21.5 billion in March 2020 to $47 billion in the latest quarter, while loans receivables increased from $1.1 billion to $7.3 billion.
The company’s shares trade on the Jamaica Stock Exchange and last traded at $86.01 at earnings for the full year of $4 the PE is 21.5.