Kingston Wharves saw net profit attributable to shareholders growing by $56 million to $333 million in the quarter ending in March for a 20 percent over the comparable period in 2016. Profit before taxation grew 24 percent from $325 million in 2016 to $402 million in 2017. Earnings per stock unit ended the quarter at to 23.25 cents up from 19.34 cents in 2016. The 2017 performance was achieved from a combination of rising revenues and lower cost but higher taxation.
Group revenues amounted to $1.4 billion, 16 percent higher than or $1.2 billion in the corresponding period in 2016. Gross profit climbed 19.4 percent from $557 million to $662 million. Administrative expenses rose 7 percent from $236 million to $252 million, finance cost fell from $40 million to $31 million.
Terminal Operations| Operating revenue of the Terminal Operations Division amounted to $1.1 billion, a 14 percent increase over last year. Divisional profits increased by 21 percent from $274 million to $331 million. “The main driver behind this growth was the container handling operations which advanced by 8 percent over the corresponding period of the prior year,” chairman stated in the chairman’s report to shareholders.
Logistics & Ancillary| Logistics and Ancillary Services segment revenues grew 18 percent to $327 million, over the similar period in 2016. “This was achieved primarily through an expanding customer base as a result of deliberate marketing and business development efforts as well as the deployment of new technology to improve our integrated logistics services and allow for improved security and more efficient systems for the warehousing, delivery and timely receipt of cargo. The Logistics Services division earned operating profits of $98 million, an increase of 33 percent over the prior year,” Hall stated.
“We have invested considerably in our physical and technological infrastructure, embarking on significant terminal rehabilitation as well as the construction of a near-port domestic automotive centre to the benefit of both our terminal operations and our integrated logistics efforts. Our Total Logistics Facility, a purpose-built, state-of-the-art logistics complex will open our doors later this year, creating further opportunity to improve on our product offering and to execute planned vertical integration,” Hall further stated.
Shareholders’ Equity stands at $19 billion with borrowings at $2.2 billion and cash and short term investments of $2.7 billion.
The Company is listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange and last traded at $30 for a PE of 26 based on estimated earnings of $1.15 for 2017.
Profit rises 20% at Kingston Wharves
Buy out interest for Berger Paints?
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Reports reaching IC Insider.com is that Jamaican based Berger Paints is in play with more than one interested party eyeing the profitable target one source within the financial community stated.
I know as a fact that an offer was made on Thursday but was rejected by Berger as inadequate and would not involve taking over the staff. Another source indicates that the parties are in discussion on terms with the price of $20 that the stock traded at today being within the ball park of where an offer could be at. By next week a clearer picture should emerge our source advises.
One name said to be associated with the one of the offers is Josef Bogdanovich one of the investors involved in the takeover of Hardware and Lumber.
It’s unclear if the planned acquisition by Bogdanovich if successful would be placed under the Hardware and Lumber umbrella which would make economic sense as it would lead to economies of scale in a number of different areas.
The interest comes against the back ground of Berger having recorded the highest level of profit ever at $316 million up from $122 million in 2016, with IC Insider forecasting earnings of $2 per share or $430 million for the year ending March 2018.
Berger closed trading at $6 at the end of 2016 and is up 233 percent for the year to date and is the second best performing main market stock for the year second only to Pulse Investment that is up 360 percent. Berger has been in IC Insider.com TOP 10 since this year and in the TOP 5 Main market from inception on September 9 last year.
Honey Bun’s sales up margin down
Honey Bun Sales up 17% in Q2
High riding Junior Market listing, Honey Bun enjoyed a huge bounce in profit in the year to August 2016, but in 2017 it not only failed to repeat that performance but ended up with reduced profit in its latest half year results.
A fall in gross profit margin and slow growth in revenues were the major contributing factors for the decline. Gross margin, fell to 43 percent of sales down from 46 percent in 2016 for the first quarter and 43.6 percent for the six months from 46.7 percent for the half year in 2016.
Profit before tax for the March quarter fell 12 percent to $45 million and for the six months the company best known for its pastries suffered an 11 percent decline in profits to $91 million from the prior year.
Profit after tax for the quarter chipped in $40 million versus $49 million in 2016 and for year to date March $77 million compared with $95 million for the same period last year. Earnings per share ended at 8 cents for the quarter and 16 cents for the half year.
In the second quarter of financial year 2017 sales increased by $53 million or 17 percent over the corresponding period in 2016, to reached $368 million with the pace of growth coming well ahead of the 7 percent increase for the year to date. Revenues for the half year rose $73 million to end at $680 million.
One Honey Bun’s Products.
form a major part of sales during Easter and the timing of the important Christian season, can result in big sales shift. Importantly, while all Easter sales would have been included in the 2016 half year results, with Easter falling towards the end of March 2016. For 2017, with Easter falling in mid-April, would have resulted in a shift in some revenues coming in the June quarter. The 17 percent sales increase in the second quarter is therefore far more impressive than it appears on the surface.
“Administrative, selling and distribution costs combined increased by 20 percent mainly due to the investment in capacity building programmes to facilitate business growth” Michelle Chong, the company’s CEO stated in her report to shareholders. Honey Bun’s corporate income tax incentive was reduced from 100 percent to 50 percent.
Honey Bun declared an interim dividend of two cents per share payable on June 1, to shareholders on record as at May 17. The stock will start trading ex-dividend, on May 15, 2017. The company last paid a dividend of 2 cents on January 9, in June 2016 a dividend of 3 cents per share was paid.
Late Easter hits Purity profit
Consolidated Bakeries proift down in Q1.
Consolidated Bakeries suffered a reversal in fortunes in their first quarter results to March this year, with Easter falling in mid-April.
Easter was celebrated towards the end of March last year resulting revenues for Easter buns being reflected in full during the first quarter. Revenues for the recent quarter fell to $228 million from $261 million last year and profit declining from $22.8 million down to $5.8 million in the latest quarter.
Administrative, Selling and Distribution cost were effectively flat during the quarter versus that of the 2016 period. Gross profit margin ended at just over 36 percent compared to 37 percent in 2016. Earnings per share end at 3 cents in 2017 and 10 cents in 2016.
138% pretax gains for Jetcon
Jetcon JSE listing ceremony last year March
Pre-owned car dealer Jetcon Corporation, generated strong growth in revenues of 75 percent to end with $258.5 million in the first quarter ending March, this year compared to 55 percent growth in the same period in 2016.
The company results benefited from gains in gross margin during the quarter, from 18.5 percent to 20.7 percent and an increase of 138 percent in pretax profit, to $37.3 million versus $15.7 million in 2016. Earnings per share ended at 19 cents versus 7.5 cents last year, partially due to taxation in the first quarter in 2016 and increase in pretax profit.
The growth in revenues for the quarter is in line with the increase in the December 2016 quarter, and slightly lower than the September quarter of 86 percent increase, but well ahead of the June 2016 quarter of 39 percent, the company reported in its release of the first quarter results to the Jamaica Stock Exchange.
Cost of sales for the 2016 quarter, was adjusted upward while some items in administrative expenses were reclassified to direct cost, the net result is downwards revision to the profit, reported in our first quarter results released in 2016. There are also major changes to inventories and amounts in receivables relating to amounts paid for goods in Transit.
Inventory of motor vehicles and parts more than doubled since March 2016 and is up by $51 million since December 2016, to $292 million, a deliberate strategy to increase choice for customers and sales, Jetcon stated in their quarterly report. The company stated that sales for the period after the quarter, continue to be ahead of 2016 with an increase of 52 percent.
Jetcon traded on the Jamaica Stock Exchange at $13.25 and is up from $2.25 when it listed in March 2016.
John Jackson is a director and Chairman of Jetcon Corporation.
50c dividend for Berger
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The board of Berger Paints Jamaica approved a Special Dividend of Twenty Cents and a final of Thirty Cents per ordinary stock unit to be recommended to shareholders at the 2017 annual general meeting.
The payment is expected to be on August 4, to shareholders on the Company’s register at the close of business July 21, 2017. The ex-dividend date is set for July 19.
The proposed payment is exactly in line with IC Insider.com’s forecast. IC Insider forecasted earnings of $1.30 per share for 2016 and $1.90 for 2018 and suggested that the results equated to dividend of approximately 50 cents per share for 2016 and around 70 cents for 2018.
In 2016, the company made net profit of $122 million compared to $67 million in 2015 and earnings per stock unit 57 cents in 2016 and 31 cents in 2015. A dividend of 20 cents per share amounting to $42.86 million and representing 35 percent of profit for the year ended March 2016 was paid on July 14, 2016 and a dividend of 12 cents per share amounting to $25.7 million or 38.35 percent of 2015 profit was paid in 2015.
The stock traded on the main market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange at $16.51.
Split coming for Pulse shares
Kingsley Cooper Chairman of Pulse
Pulse Investments’ directors propose to consider the splitting of the issued shares of the company into two units for each one currently issued. The Board Meeting is set to be held on Monday, May 22.
The resolution, if passed by the Board, would go to a General Meeting to be voted on by the shareholders of Pulse Investments. The company currently has 271,789,674 issued shares, the split would put the total up to 543,579,348 units.
The company’s stock last traded on the Jamaica Stock Exchange at $8.05 and carries a PE of 6 compared to 13 for the main market.
During 2016 the company passed a resolution agreeing to issue additional shares by way of a rights issue. From all indications, with the PE well below the general market the company must be awaiting a greater uptick in stock price before going back to shareholders for more funds.
NCB buy rated for growth
NCB Financial Group’s shares look likely to rise.
NCB Financial Group (NCBFG) reported net profit of $9.5 billion for the six months ended March 31, 2017, an increase of 58 percent over the prior year, with profit for the quarter to March, ended with a 63 percent increase to $5.9 billion, up from $3.59 billion in 2016.
Operating income amounted to $29.2 billion, an improvement of $3.8 billion or 15 percent over the similar period in 2016. The increase the Group said “was driven gains realised on investment activities increasing by $1.8 billion or 96 percent mainly due to improved investor confidence as a result of the improved macroeconomic fundamentals of Jamaica. Net fee & commission income increasing by $1.7 billion or 33 percent, primarily due to credit related fees from volume growth in loan product sales, point of sale and e-commerce commissions, coupled with corporate finance and unit trust fees.”
Loans the main driver of profits, increased by $34.6 billion or a strong 20 percent to $207.3 billion at the end of March over a year ago. The increase was driven by a 22 percent in Retail Banking and 17 percent increase in Corporate Banking portfolio, Patrick Hylton, the Managing director, advised investors in a report accompanying the results.
Operating profit rose about the similar period in 2016 by 150 percent for Retail & SME divisio0n, 16 percent for payment services, 77 percent for Corporate Banking. Treasury and Correspondent Banking enjoyed a 46 percent rise, Wealth, Asset Investment Banking operating profit jumped 67 percent, Life Insurance and Pension Fund Management rose 50 percent general insurance grew 42 percent and other 45 percent
The Group approved an interim dividend of 60 cents per ordinary stock unit at its board of directors meeting on April 27. The dividend will result in a total payment of $1.48 billion. Earnings per share ended at 42.39 for the March quarter and $3.84 for the six months and seems on target to exceed IC Insider.com target of $8 for the full year to September.
In trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the group’s stock traded at $63.75 and at TT$3.99 on the Trinidad Stock Market.
$1.5B for NCB Group shareholders
NCBFG paying 60C in dividend in May.
NCB Financial Group approved an interim dividend of 60 cents per ordinary stock unit at its board of directors meeting on April 27. The dividend will result in a total payment of $1.48 billion.
The dividend is payable on May 29, 2017 to stockholders on record as at May 12, 2017. In 2016, NCB paid a dividend in December of 90 cents per share, that brought the full year payment to $2.40 for a pay-out of 38 percent of profit. In January this year, a dividend of 60 cent was paid to shareholders. On May 27, last year, an interim dividend of 50 cents per share was paid to the group’s shareholders. This year’s payments come against a 58 percent jump in profit over the prior year to March to $9.5 billion.
In trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the group’s stock traded at $63.75 and at TT$3.99 on the Trinidad Stock Market.
Cement sales up in Jamaica
Caribbean Cement increased sales in Q1 2017.
Sale of cement rose in Jamaica but fell in the twin island state of Trinidad and Tobago in the first quarter of this year, a report from Trinidad Cement (TCL) reported.
According to the company, “Domestic gray cement volume sales declined by 6 percent for the group during the first quarter of 2017.” “The decline mainly reflects a general slowdown in due construction sector in Trinidad and Tobago market, Trinidad Cement advised investors in a release to the Trinidad Stock Exchange.”
“Volumes in Jamaica grew, the company stated, reflecting an increase in tourism and infrastructure activity. At Arawak Cement in Barbados, cement volumes were driven by the residential and commercial sector.”