Company News — Page 162

General Accident dividend

September 26, 2013 by IC Insider.com

General Accident Insurance has declared an interim dividend of 0.08728 cents per share payable on October 14, 2013 to shareholders on record as at October 9, 2013. The stock will trade ex-dividend on October 7, 2013. This means that investors who hold the stock prior to the and up to the start of the ex-dividend date will be entitled to the pay-out.

The company last paid an interim dividend of 4.85 cents per share payable on March 28, 2012 to shareholders on record as at March 15, 2013. This added dividend payment brings the total for the year to 13.578 or a yield of nearly 8 percent based on the current stock price.

In 2012, they made two payments of 4.85 cents each. The 2013 payment represents a 40 percent increase over the 2012 payment and is likely a signal of continuation of improved profits for this year.

General Accident performed well in both the first and second quarters of this year with profit increasing 48 percent to $80 million in the second quarter bringing the six month results to $177.7 million, an increase of 57 percent over the same period in 2012.

Filed Under: Company News, Dividends Tagged With: Dividends, General Accident, JSE Company

Buy rated stock tracking

September 23, 2013 by IC Insider.com

It’s been almost three months since our first Buy Rated list was published and it’s time to take look at the list’s performance as well as who’s been on and off.

To date, two stocks have been removed from the Buy Rated list. Proven, traded on the Jamaica Stock Exchange was removed on August 9th, 2013. To read our latest post about Proven, click here.

First Citizens Bank had the shortest stint on the Buy Rated list so far. The stock achieved a 52% increase in price within the first week of trading on the Trinidad & Tobago market. Find out why the stock lost its ‘buy’ shine by reading First Citizens off Buy Rated list.

The IC Insider’s Buy Rated seal of approval is given to a stock that we believe is a compelling buy with earnings that are strong relative to the price and strong prospects of generating high price gains within the next twelve months.

Our research is backed by published reports of the company’s performance and insights of future earnings that can be found at ICInsider.com. The final decision to buy, or not, is your personal choice.

To find published reports for a Buy Rated stock on IC Insider, please choose the category ‘Buy Rated’ under Company News or enter the company name, in full or part at ‘Search IC Insider’.

Filed Under: Company News, JSE Main Market, Stock Market, TTSE Market Tagged With: JSE Company, TTSE

Changes, changes, changes

September 23, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Monday 23 September, 2013 | Both the Buy Rated and Market Watch lists have undergone major changes based on trading over the past week.

Buy rated additions | Grace Kennedy and Pan Jam made it to the Buy Rated list in Jamaica based on their low values while GraceKennedy, JMMB, Scotia Investments and Sagicor Finance have been added to the Buy Rated list in Trinidad based on a very low PE of 6 times 2013 earnings.

Buy rated removal | First Citizens Bank was removed based on the stock’s rise to the $35 price range and a 58% appreciation reached after listing on the Trinidad Exchange.

Market Watch | The Caribbean Flavours IPO hits the streets this week and has been added to the Market Watch list as it has the potential to generate capital appreciation after listing on the Junior Market. Cable & Wireless is added to the main market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange based on the company’s reporting of the rapid addition of mobile customers. Agostini’s has been added to the Watch list of Trinidad Stocks based on its current low PE.

The IC Insider’s Buy Rated seal of approval is given to a stock that we believe is a compelling buy with earnings that are strong relative to the price and strong prospects of generating high price gains within the next twelve months.

Better than a broker’s ‘buy’ recommendation, IC Insider has no vested interest in any stock transaction or conflict of interest. Our research is backed by published reports of the company’s performance and insights of future earnings that can be found at ICInsider.com. The final decision to buy, or not, is your personal choice.

To find published reports for a Buy Rated stock on IC Insider, please use category ‘Buy Rated’ under Company News or enter the company name, in full or part at ‘Search IC Insider’.

Image courtesy of ImageryMajestic/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Filed Under: Company News, Company Results, Initial Public Offers, JSE Main Market, Stock Market, Stocks to watch, TTSE Market Tagged With: TTSE

PE Ratio: TCL back in focus

September 20, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Friday, 20th September 2013 | There were three main movers in the PE Ratio chart for this week.

First Citizens Bank which debut on the TTSE on Monday at $22 per share exploded as high as $38.45 before settling around $35 range for a gain of 58 percent for the week.

The move reached IC Insider’s suggested price range based on the valuation of other banking stocks on the TTSE. From here on, the stock is now more for long term gains as the PE ratio has risen to 23 times this year’s earnings, just above Scotia Bank and well above Republic’s 15 times PE.

The other stocks that registered changes were Trinidad Cement, which bounced back to close at $2.25 and Guardian Holdings that hit $15.50 at the end of the week. Not much has changed elsewhere in the Trinidad market from last week.

Related posts | First Citizens off Buy Rated list

Filed Under: Company News, Stock Market, Stocks to watch, TTSE Market Tagged With: PE Ratios, Trading Activity, TTSE

Jamaica Yellow Pages

September 18, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica Yellow Pages announced today its selection by Google to the Google AdWords™ Premier SMB Partner program. With this agreement in place, Jamaica Yellow Pages becomes the authorized reseller of the Google AdWords advertising program. This strategic alliance is a testament to the Jamaica Yellow Pages commitment to driving value to its advertisers through marketing programs such as Google AdWords.

As a Premier SMB Partner, Jamaica Yellow Pages now provides full-service AdWords account management on behalf of local businesses, from account setup and activation, to ongoing campaign management and optimization. This agreement will encourage small and medium sized businesses to use online advertising as a cost-effective way to find and target new customers as well as drive repeat customers.

“We are excited to launch the Google AdWords Premier SMB Partner program with hand-picked, highly qualified companies like Jamaica Yellow Pages”, said Rogelio Montekio, head of Google’s channel sales. Our Google Adwords was created to drive value to small and medium-sized businesses and maximize the performance of their campaigns”, added Mr. Montekio.

Partners in the Google AdWords™ Premier SMB Partner Programme must meet the highest standards of excellence for qualification, training and customer service. They must also bring to the table local search marketing knowledge and solid experience working with small and medium-sized businesses in the local market.

“As a business we are continuing to invest in the best resources to deliver the right partners to boost the visibility of our advertisers,” said Mark Macfee, Executive Vice President for Global Directories, publishers of the Jamaica Yellow Pages®. “We are very excited with our participation in this program which extends our range of innovative products and services and further demonstrates our commitment to providing the best solutions possible when it comes to digital marketing,” added Mr. Macfee.

For more on Jamaica Yellow Pages eMarketing for small and medium-sized businesses call 936-3940 or visit: Jamaicayp.com.

Filed Under: Company News, General Business News Tagged With: Google, Yellow Pages

Sagicor offers shares in Real Estate X Fund

September 18, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Sagicor Real Estate X Fund is offering shares in an initial public offering (IPO) which opens on September 24, 2013 and will close on October 18, 2013. The offer is subject to the right of the Company to close the Subscription List at any time without notice if subscriptions have been received for the full amount of the shares available for subscription and also subject to the right of the Company to extend the closing beyond that date. The shares are expected to be listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

A maximum 500,000,000 shares are available for subscription in this IPO with a minimum of 100 shares and in multiples of 100 shares. In the event that subscriptions or applications are received for more shares than the number of shares available for subscription and sale in this IPO, X FUND reserves the full, unqualified and absolute right to increase the number of shares in the IPO in order to satisfy all or part of the applications in excess of the 500,000,000 shares, which are comprised in the IPO but not exceeding a further 750,000,000 shares. Sagicor Jamaica and PIF have indicated that they jointly intend to exercise their options to buy shares at the IPO price with a view of holding up to 80% of the issued shares of X FUND.

The fund will invest in Sagicor real estate unit trust which holds the following properties in the fund: The R. Danny Williams Building (formerly Sagicor Centre in New Kingston), • 63-67 Knutsford Boulevard (New Kingston) • 78a Hagley Park Road (Kingston) • Sagicor Industrial Park (Marcus Garvey Drive Kingston), • Sagicor Industrial Park (Freeport, Montego Bay) • Sagicor Montego Bay Commercial Centre (Montego Bay) • Sagicor Industrial Park (Norman Road Kingston) • Spanish Town Shopping Centre (St Catherine) • 23-25 Seymour Avenue (Kingston) • Jewel Dunn’s River (St Ann) • Jewel Runaway Bay (St Ann) • Jewel Paradise Cove (St Ann).

The authorised capital of the Company is US$5,000,001,000. There is a Special Share which is held by Sagicor Jamaica, which the company sates is to ensure that the structure of the investment is not subverted by investors who may acquire substantial interest in the Company.

Sagicor Real Estate X Fund Limited (“X FUND”) is an International Business Company incorporated in Saint Lucia. Since its incorporation on May 31, 2011 it has not conducted any business on its own account other than to enter into certain agreements in anticipation of this IPO. The fund proposes to apply the proceeds of the IPO (“the IPO Proceeds”) to acquire other units in the Sigma Real Estate Portfolio. Pending investment of excess cash in units in the Sigma Real Estate Portfolio, the X FUND may invest in other assets including marketable securities. Thereafter the Company will carry on business as a passive investment holding company.

X Fund intends to distribute by way of dividends up to 85% of its annual net realised income.

The Articles of Incorporation of X FUND specifically authorises X FUND, from time to time, by a resolution of its directors, to issue additional shares in exchange for units in the Sigma Real Estate Portfolio. This will allow X FUND to purchase additional units from Sagicor Jamaica and/or PIF or direct from Sigma Real Estate Portfolio, without securing the approval of the shareholders in general meeting.

IC Insider call | Return on real estate in the form of income is low and growth in the value of the share price is unlikely to be rapid and may not show any growth in the short run. The fund provides a means of diversifying into the real estate market as well as in the tourism sector, but the latter can be great for a few years and not so great for some years.

This IPO is a real estate play that will not give investors the best return for their money. Investors will be buying shares at 100 percent book value with roughly a 4 percent yield in Year One. Meanwhile, the Pan Jamaican Investment Trust, which has real estate assets amounting to around 25 percent of total assets and generating a third of gross income from real estate, is selling at a huge discount to book value of $51 versus book of $78. Additionally, Pan Jamaican’s decision to invest in the new Marriott Kingston hotel, and no doubt with low interest rates, as well as other ventures into real estate developments, is likely to enhance the real estate portfolio over time. More importantly, the share price of Pan Jam stands a much greater chance of appreciation than a pure real estate fund.

The fact is that real estate does best when leveraged. Specifically, the Kingston Properties REIT is an excellent real estate play that could outperform the Sagicor Real Estate X Fund over time.

Filed Under: Company News, Initial Public Offers, Stock Market, TTSE Market Tagged With: JSE Company, KPREIT, Pan Jam, Sagicor

JMMB grows assets $125B to $200B

September 16, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica Money Market Brokers Limited (JMMB) has been given the green light to acquire an additional 50 percent share of the Intercommercial Banking Group Limited (IBL Group) to bring its stake in the company to full ownership. As a result JMMB, in just over a year, will almost double its assets from J$125 billion to $200 billion.

The acquired entity is a commercial bank in Trinidad & Tobago and not large by any standards as far financial institutions are concerned but it puts the Group in a position to gain market share in a country that seems to have started to grow again. By comparison, IBL Group is about the size of Mayberry Investments.

The IBL acquisition will add almost TT$1.55 billion in total assets that it held on its books at March (roughly J$14 is equal to TT$1). IBL assets enjoyed an increase of TT$336 million or 28 percent over the prior year and was mainly driven by the growth in the loan portfolio which moved from TT$488 million to TT$733 million. At the end of March, JMMB’s investment in IBL group stood at J$808 million for which they paid $331 million as indicated in the audited accounts. The data on IBL finances suggest that JMMB could have paid at least J$500 million for the added 50 percent ownership.

JMMB in a release on Friday confirmed that the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago has completed its assessment of JMMB`s application to acquire the additional fifty (50) percent of the shares of Intercommercial Bank Limited and Intercommercial Trust and Merchant Bank Limited, and has granted its approval to acquire the shares and become the 100 percent shareholder.

Profit | The Intercommercial Banking Group Limited (IBL Group) generated increased profit for the year ending March 2013 with a net profit after tax of TT$10.2 million, an increase of TT$5.7 million over the previous year but they reported a loss of JS$25 million in the quarter to June.

The banking group is operating in an economy of high levels of local currency liquidity, low interest rates and lackluster economic activity which have negatively impacted the demand for credit. Against these economic realities, IBL Group intensified its loan growth campaign which started in November 2011, and has been able to achieve an increase in net interest margin of 18.73 percent or TT$7.99 million to TT$50.66 million. Net interest income accounts for 61 percent of the total operating income of the Group. Interest income on loans and advances increased by TT$11 million or 26 percent while investment income fell by TT$2 million as a result of the low interest rate environment, as well as portfolio rebalancing into more liquid assets.

The Group’s operating expenses for the year was reported at TT$63.5 million, up TT$6.7 million or 12 percent over the previous financial year. IBL’s growth and expansion strategy over the past 17 months has contributed to this increase, the main drivers of which were staff related expenses and advertising and marketing expenditures.

Staff costs, the largest component of operating expenses, totaled TT$35 million to March, representing an increase of TT$4.6 million or 15 percent. In addition to the opening of the Tunapuna branch and the resultant incremental staff count, several key management positions that were vacant in previous financial year were filled in the 2012/13 financial year.

Client Deposits | In their annual report to shareholders, JMMB stated, “The total client deposit portfolio grew by 28.2 percent in the financial year which is consistent with the increase experienced in the loan portfolio. This represented a TT$66.2 million growth in savings and a TT$284.3 million growth in time deposits. The Group continued to focus on diversifying its deposit portfolio by expanding its core deposit (savings and demand accounts). While these efforts had some success in the year, we expect that more positive results will be seen in the coming months when several key initiatives in channel distribution are rolled out across the branch network.”

JMMB is an IC Insider Buy Rated stock. In 2011, JMMB placed third in the Investor’s Choice’s Champion Company award that recognizes management excellence.

Filed Under: Company News, General Business News Tagged With: JMMB, JSE Company

CWC to launch 4G LTE in Cayman

September 14, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Cable & Wireless (C&W) will launch Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile data services in the Cayman Islands, where it trades as LIME. C&W will launch LTE services in the 2013/14 financial year initially on the isle of Grand Cayman.

The upgrade is the latest part of a programme of network upgrades across C&W’s pan-America business, providing customers with better access to mobile data. Mobile data usage is the fastest growing service across Cable & Wireless Communications’ (CWC) businesses, with Group mobile data revenue increasing by 34% in the 2012/13 year, a release from CWC said.

LTE is a ‘fourth generation’ (4G) mobile service which will enable C&W to provide mobile data services at speeds about four times faster than currently available in the Cayman Islands. This will enable customers to access services on their smartphones such as video calling, streaming of HD video clips and ultra-fast web browsing.

CWC was awarded the mobile spectrum over which it will broadcast LTE services having won a competitive tender process. It was awarded two blocks of spectrum in the 700 megahertz (Mhz) spectrum band, which will help to ensure that customers receive a good signal even when indoors.

“Just over two years after launching 4G mobile services across all three of the Cayman Islands, C&W has acquired an LTE license and additional frequencies which will enable us to provide super-fast mobile data services on the next generation of technology” the release from C&W said.

What is 4G? | Mobile phones have been through several generations of development.

The introduction of basic data services (predominantly text messaging) was called second generation (2G). EDGE networks provide faster connectivity to enable easier usage of mobile internet. EDGE networks are often marketed as 2.5G.

The 3G standard was given to networks utilising High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) technology, which enabled even faster download speeds and the use of multimedia services such as video calling and streamed video clips. 3G networks also enabled operators to launch mobile broadband services.

The International Telecoms Union has designated that a further generational leap has taken place in mobile technology. The 4G standard is awarded to a range of network technologies including HSPA+, WiMax and LTE.

Filed Under: Company News, General Business News Tagged With: C&WJ, Lime

TTSE: PE ratio not much change

September 14, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Friday, 13th September | There’s not much change to the PE Ratios for stocks on the Trinidad Stock Market as prices changes have remained muted for much of the past week. There are signs that with the allocation of the First Citizens Bank shares, funds may have been freed up for trading in other stocks.

On Monday, First Citizens is expected to commence trading and that is likely to make an immediate difference to the PE for that stock. There are others that appear ready to move in the days ahead. Trinidad Cement with the big pull back should attract some buying interest again.

We have removed National Enterprises from Finance and Banks to Conglomerates as the company is a holding company for a number of industrial enterprises in Trinidad.

Filed Under: Company News, Stock Market, Stocks to watch, TTSE Market Tagged With: PE Ratios, TTSE

TVJ Chairman resigns

September 13, 2013 by IC Insider.com

Radio Jamaica Limited (RJR) has advised that Milton Samuda, Attorney at law, has resigned from the Board of Directors of the company effective September 11, 2013. Samuda who was also chairman of the RJR subsidiary, Television Jamaica (TVJ) has served on the RJR board for seventeen years. As the head of the powerful Chamber of Commerce for a number of years, Samuda would have been the likely candidate to take over as Chairman for the RJR Group when the current Chairman Lester Spalding steps down.

The resignation comes in light of the controversy relating to a press interview which involved his clients, world-renown Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson. Samuda, who reportedly sat in as part of the interview, is alleged to have taken the journalist’s tapes which were later edited.

In the release issued by the company following an investigation into the matter, “There were corporate governance issues and policy breaches which the chairman of TVJ accepts.”

Filed Under: Company News, General Business News Tagged With: JSE Company, RJR