Investment banker Proven Investments and National Commercial Bank, Jamaica’s number one banking group, are lining up to acquire some large blocks of shares in Guardian Holdings, the Trinidad & Tobago company. 
IC Insider has confirmed that the targets are – Tenetic Limited block of 35.84 million, which, amounts to 15.46 percent of the company and Arthur Lok Jack’s direct holding of 6.29 percent or 14.59 million units. Arthur Lok Jack’s is listed as having a beneficial interest in Tenetic. Royal Insurance Trinidad holds 22.33 million units or 9.63 percent and RBC Trust T&T controls 4.99 percent or 11.57 million shares.
Lok Jack wants out, as various sources indicate that his holdings were partially funded by borrowings and he now needs to liquidate the debt. Royal Bank, according to our sources, is moving completely out of the Caribbean region. This sale would be another aspect of their exiting. RBC sold the Jamaica operations last year to Sagicor Group and the Suriname operation to Republic Bank of Trinidad, slated to be sold the Cayman operation.
The acquisition of Guardian would be a complete reversal, returning the company to its Jamaican roots. Guardian was once majority owned by Jamaica Mutual life, but Mutual sold out their holding sometimes before they ran into Jamaica’s problems and folded. The Jamaican entities consider the company to be clean, well run and considerably undervalued. Part of the plan is to increase the dividend payments, which is just a third of profits and relist the shares on the Jamaica Stock exchange once more. No time frame was given when the deal will be sealed, but Proven has just raised approximately US$30 million in a rights issue of shares, so they are well prepared to take up their share with borrowings being a part it of the funding.
Guardian traded in Trinidad at TT$14.26 or U$2.23 on Wednesday. This would mean that the sale to Proven and NCB stands at a whopping U$$188 million, representing approximately 84.33 million units or 36.37 percent of the current share capital of 231.9 million units.
Guardian is primarily a Life Insurance company but also owns a general insurance arm. NCB operates the well known OMNI Life Insurance Company. Part of the likely synergy in future would be a merger of general insurance companies with Omni to be sold to the Life Insurance arm, enjoying economies of scale. The possibility exists that and the expanded general Insurance company could be listed on the stock exchanges within the Caribbean, thus spreading the risk associated therewith.
Guardian reported total revenues of TT$4.8 billion in 2014 and profit to shareholders of TT$401 million. Total shareholder equity stood at TT$2.9 billion and net asset per share TT$2.65. Dividends paid was 57 cents, covered by profits to the tune of just over three times.
Last year Proven acquired a block of shares in Knutsford Express bring their total holdings to 20,000,002 units or 20 percent of the company and 49 percent of Access Financial Services.Proven Investments is chaired by the leading Jamaican Lawyer, Hugh Hart, a former senator and minister of government under the Jamaica Labour Party regime of the 1980s. Some of the top shareholders include directly, or through companies they are connected to are Hugh Hart, Garfield Sinclair, CEO of Cable & Wireless Jamaica, Christopher Williams, President, Proven Investments and former manager of NCB Capital Markets, an NCB subsidiary; Senator Mark Golding, Justice Minister; Peter Bunting, Security Minister and Paula Kerr-Jarret. Transport and Works Minister Omar Davies is also a holder of shares in the company.
Patrick Hylton, President of NCB, is a director of Massy Holdings, of which Lok Jack is the Chairman.
Junior market within 5 pnts of record
Caribbean Producers traded 2.4 million shares on Tuesday
At the close of the market, there were 7 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and only 1 with a lower. The junior market ended with 4 securities closing with no bids to buy and 8 that had no stocks being offered for sale.
Stocks trading in the junior market are, Access Financial
traded 7,428 units and added 1 cent to end at $15.10, a new 52 weeks’ high, Cargo Handlers closed at a new 52 weeks high of $21.50 by gaining 50 cents with 20,000 shares trading. Caribbean Cream had 8,000 units changing hands to end 4 cents higher at a new 52 weeks’ high of 85 cents. Caribbean Producers had 2,416,990 shares trading between $2.88 and $3.05, to close 9 cents lower at $2.90. Consolidated Bakeries traded 45,000 shares at 94 cents to gain 12 cents, Dolphin Cove traded 1,000 at a new 52 weeks’ high of $10, Lasco Financial Services had 28,800 units trading and closed at $1.30 and Lasco Manufacturing traded 288,414 shares between $1.35 and $1.50 and closed at $1.35, the stock traded during the day at 52 weeks high.
Carib Cement shares frozen
Caribbean Cement is now listed as trading at $5 which would be the highest for more than a year, but the trade pushing the price to that level has, resulted in the stock being frozen from trading for an hour.
The stock can trade up to another 15 percent higher from the $4.60 or a maximum of $5.29 for the day. Mayberry Investments crossed 300,000 units at $4.08 shares which were sold from in house inventory to a client similarly another 1,000,000 units at $4.18 and 2,000,000 units at $4.20 was similarly traded by them fro in house inventory.
Mayberry Investments also traded 177,448 shares at $4.80 and 7,000 at $5 both these trades exceeded the permitted price change of 15 percent which led to the stock be frozen unit 11.48am. the stock has been responding to a big jump in profit for the first quarter, suggesting earnings should exceed $1 per shares.
Supreme bumps up dividend again
Supreme Ventures approved the payment of an interim dividend of 14 cents to be made on 27th May 2015 to shareholders on record as at 14th May 2015 representing an increase of 55.6 percent over the amount paid in 2014.
The approved payment translates to 16 percent rate of return per annum. In addition the company will also be paying the final portion of the special dividend they declared on 2nd March 2015.
The company announced in March, a final ordinary dividend for the year ended December 2014 of 8 cents per share, payable on March 21 and a special dividend of 23 cents per share to be paid on March 21 and 4 cents per share payable on May 27.
SVL paid dividends of 3 cents per share on January 8, last 
year as well as 3 cents in March, 9 cents in May, another 3 in September and 5 cents per stock on December 9, last year. The final regular dividend for 2014 brings the total relating to the 2014 profit to 19 cents per share or 54 percent of profits for the year. The total dividend payment just approved by the company totals 31 cents per share and is just short of the total profit for 2014, of 35.2 cents per share.
The company just reported a 20 percent increase in after tax to $405 million for the three-month period to March. The latest announcement of the results and dividends are likely to push the stocks much higher in the coming week.
Unemployment worsens
Jamaica’s unemployment worsened in December last year compared with a year ago according to the main findings of the Labour Force Survey, conducted by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) between December 14 and 20, last year.
According to Statin, the Unemployment Rate for December 2014 was 14.2 percent compared to 13.4 in December 2014 leaving the Employment Rate at 85.8 percent, a fall from the 86.6 percent in December 2013.
A total of 188,100 persons were unemployed in December last year, an increase of 13,100 when compared with 175,000 in December 2013. The deterioration did not stem from less persons being employed as the number of persons in the Labour Force rose to 1,320,800, or 15,700 higher than the 1,305,100 recorded in December 2013. The Employed Labour Force for December 2014 was 1,132,700, or 2,600 more than the 1,130,100 recorded in December 2013.
Jamaica’s Minister of Finance. At the last election his party promised jobs & more jobs. Tight economic policies won’t deliver them in the short term
The number of persons employed in the group ‘Manufacturing’ increased by 7,200 persons or 10 percent, while ‘Transport, Storage and Communication’ increased by 5,500 persons (7.7 percent). Agriculture, Hunting, Forestry & Fishing’ declined by 7,400 persons (3.6 percent) followed by ‘Real Estate, Renting & Business Activities’, which declined by 6,100 persons or 8.6 percent.
Market holding poised to gain more
Jamaica Stock Exchange activity saw 22 securities trading up to midday on Tuesday leading to 
the all Jamaica composite Index being up 1,146.53 points to 98,778.94 and the JSE market Index gained 1,025.48 points to 89,495.97.There were 5 securities trading in the junior market. In the main market Caribbean Cement traded 9,060 units at $3, up by 30 cents and now have a bid for 100,000 units at $3.30, Carreras’ bid is at $46.01 but for only 585 units, the stock last traded on Tuesday at $45. Desnoes & Geddes bid is at $6.05 for a small volume versus $5.90 at the last sale on Tuesday, JMMB Group has a bid at $7.56 versus the last sale of $7.50.
NCB post increased Q2 profit
National Commercial Bank is reporting net profit for the three months ended March 2015 of $3.27 billion versus $3.05 billion in the 2014 period.
Changes in the manner the tax of the groups assets are now being treated with all amounts due being booked as expenses up front has distorted the results in the early months of the fiscal year which are front loaded with these cost. Normalising the expenses would result, according to NCB in net profit for the three months ended March 2015 of $3.34 billion, 20 percent or $563 million over normalised net profit for the December 2014 quarter of $2,778 million, and 12 percent or $349 million over the previously reported net profit for the three months ended March 2014 of $2.99 billion. For the six months to March the banking group reported profit of $5.4 billion or $2.19 per shares compared with $5.55 billion in 2014. The up-fronting of the asset tax, resulted in the lower 2015 profit compared to 2014. NCB should go on to earn around $7 billion in the second half of the year or around $5 per share for the full year.
For the six months to March 2015, operating income increased by 14 percent, or $2.9 billion, compared with the six months ended March 2014, mainly as a result of gain on foreign currency and investment activities, up by $1.5 billion. This was due to higher levels of foreign exchange income and gains from the sale of debt securities compared to the prior year, NCB said.
Also contributing to the increased profit is net fee and commission income, increasing by $652 million or 16 percent, mainly due to Payment Services fees related to card usage and transaction volumes, credit related fees from the growth in loans and greater corporate finance and unit trust fees booked in the current period, the banking group stated in its release to the Stock Exchange. Net interest income, increasing by 4 percent, or $542 million, primarily due to growth in the net loan portfolio.
Loans and advances, totalled $157.9 billion (net of provision for credit losses) at March 2015, grew by 5 percent, or $7.4 billion, compared to the loan portfolio as at March 2014.
NCB declared an interim dividend of 45 cents per ordinary stock unit which is payable on May 21 for stockholders on record as at May 8, 2015.
Treasury bill rates slide continue
Government of Jamaica Treasury bill rates, declined in the latest auction of the short-term debt instruments, opened today at the Bank of Jamaica offices. The 182 days instrument closed at its lowest level since May 2013 when it then cleared at 6.44 percent.
At today’s auction the average rate came in at 6.787 percent, down from 6.998 percent in March and the 91 days ended at 6.06 percent, a decline that is well down on the previous rate of 6.72765 percent. 
The declines come against the background of consistently falling rates since the start of the second quarter last year, negative inflation and a cut this month in Bank of Jamaica’s CD rate, from 5.75 percent to 5.50 percent.
The implications of the fall include potential for lower lending rates down the road, stimulation of interest sensitive investments such as stocks and long term bonds and of course persons looking for income from fixed interest securities will be getting less income going forward than in the recent past.
Prices up in March down for year
The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Statin) reports that for March 2015 that inflation rose by 0.5 percent over the February which had a fall of 0.7 percent. The calendar year-to-date inflation rate is minus 0.6 percent. This is the first increase in the index after recording four consecutive months of decline”, Statin said.
Contributing significantly to this advance in the index was a 2.9 percent increase in the index for the Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels due mainly higher rates for electricity. Lower prices for vegetables and starchy foods helped in moderating the increase with a small reduction in prices.
The divisions that recorded increases in prices are, ‘Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco’ 0.3 percent, ‘Clothing and Footwear’ 0.4 percent, ‘Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance’ 0.3 percent, ‘Health’ 0.2 percent, ‘Transportation 0.7 percent, ‘Recreation and Culture’ 0.1 percent, ‘Restaurants and Accommodation Services’ 0.3 percent ‘, ‘Miscellaneous Goods and Services’ 1.3 percent, while ‘Education’, and ‘Communication’ each remained unchanged.
BOJ cut interest rate
The Bank of Jamaica’s 30-day Certificate of Deposit interest rate was reduced on Friday, 17 April 2015 Thursday to 5.50 percent from 5.75 percent, the central bank announced on Thursday. This is the first such reduction since February 2013, when the rate was cut by 50 basis points from 6.25 percent to 5.75 percent.
BOJ in its release stated, “this adjustment to the BOJ policy rate, reflects the Bank’s expectation that the rate of increase in consumer prices is likely to remain low in the coming year”.
“The recently announced inflation rate of 4 per cent for FY 2014/15 is the lowest in 48 years. The sharper than expected decline in inflation for the fiscal year was due in part to the fall in oil prices but also to the moderation in price increases that has resulted from fiscal consolidation and economic reforms. The impact of these changes will help to moderate inflation impulses over the medium term” the central bank concluded.
The reduction is also in line with a decline in Treasury bill rates over the past year, coupled with increased inflows of foreign exchange into the system that led to some amount of revaluation of the Jamaican dollar.
