Profit jumped 45 percent to $363 million for the quarter ending September this year, from $250 million in the September 2015 quarter for LASCO Manufacturing from revenue of $2.2 billion, an increase of 29 percent over the 1st quarter, this year and 35 percent over the June quarter of 2015.
For the six months period ended September 2016, LASCO generated a net profit of $587 million, 18 percent above the previous year’s profit of $497 million.
Revenue increased 28 percent to September 2016 to $4 billion, over the same period last year resulting from increased production as part of the expansion of the manufacturing plant. Gross margin of $1.3 billion, was achieved compared to $1 billion, the previous year.
Expenses for the six months rose 23 percent to $585 million, compared to the same period last year, due mainly to increases in marketing and equipment maintenance expenses.
“Production at the Liquid Plant continues to grow steadily, and we will further increase our capacity to meet the market demand for our iCool line of beverages, by ramping up production with the installation of additional equipment by the end of the financial year. We continue to be optimistic and confident about the future for this product line with substantial profits to be realized” Robert Parkins, Managing Director, stated in a release with the results.
Perkins went on to say “The new Dry Plant at White Marl is now fully operational, and together with the existing Red Hills Road Dry Plant recorded an increase of 24 percent in profits over last year at the end of the 2nd quarter. New products will be introduced by the end of the year to enhance the product line which is projected to continue to realize significant sales and profits.”
“The Statement of Financial Position shows Property, Plant and Equipment moving from $3.5 billion, at the beginning of the financial year to $4.6 billion at the close of the 2nd quarter. This is due to approximately $1 billion, of assets associated with both the liquid and dry plants being transferred during the period from work in progress as a result of continuing commissioning of these operations.”
The company reported cash flows from operations of $1.5 billion including more than $600 million released from working capital of which $1.17 billion was spent on expanding the plant.
IC Insider is forecasting $1.8 billion in profit or 45 cents earnings for the full year to March next year and $3.7 billion or 90 cents per share for 2018. Lasco last traded at $5 on the junior market of Jamaica Stock Exchange.
LASCO Manufacturing profit jumps 45%
Lawsuit may cost CAC $200m
Steven Marston,
Chief Executive Officer
CAC in a release to the Jamaica Stock Exchange stated that the court ruled in favour of the Claimant and awarded damages of US$372,100 and J$568,187 plus loss of profits of $7,077,874. Interest at commercial rates and legal fees were also awarded.
CAC further advised that on application, the court granted a stay of execution of 42 days and that its legal counsel is reviewing the judgment but, in the interim, the company will be providing for these amounts less the insurance amount of $20 million in the 2016 accounts.
IC Insider estimates that the company will likely be hit with a total cost of US$1 million and J$100 million before the insurance coverage when interest and legal fees are factored in.
The judgement resulted from a claim in negligence and or breach of contract as a result of a fire that occurred at the Claimant’s premises on May 11th, 2003. The Claimant prevailed at first instance in the Supreme Court with CAC appealing the judgment on account of the trial judge in the Supreme Court excluding the testimony and or report of the Company’s expert from the evidence. The Court of Appeal held that the exclusion of such evidence “created an unnecessary imbalance which was not in the interest of justice.”
CAC reported a loss of $9 million after tax for the July 2016 quarter and profit of $31 million after tax for the nine months period, compared to $39 million for the July 2015 quarter and a profit of $71.6 million for the nine months to July 2015.The net results came from sales revenues of $679 million for the nine months period compared to $674 million for 2015 and $198 million for the July quarter versus $259 million in 2015. The company saw a large climb in administrative cost of 42 percent for the nine months in 2016 and 57 percent for the quarter.
CAC successfully raised $120 million before cost of approximately $10 million in its initial public offering in December 2015. The stock traded traded on the junior market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange at $6.30 on Monday.
Paramount corrects split error
Mentors are supposed to advice and guide junior market companies’ directors in the ways of the securities market as well as other business related issues to help steer them in areas they may not be familiar with. Mentorship was wisely assessed to be needed for the smaller companies, many of whom were not being governed to the more rigorous manner that their main market neighbours are.
Directors should aide and guide management in the right direction. Ideally, management and directors should strive to work together to achieve the objectives desired. Chairmen have a major role to play to ensuring things are navigated properly. When the JSE board approved a stock split and management posted the notice that the board approved the split which was to have been effected without shareholders’ approval, the Chairmen must take a big part of the blame for the error. All the details of such an issue should have been sorted before the board meeting, with Chairman being fully and properly informed and thus ensure that it was done properly. Finally, the board should have determined and agreed when the shareholders meeting was to be held to approve the split. 
Their failure of the board to do their work properly cannot be placed solely at the feet of the executives.
This brings up the Paramount Trading stock split. The stock exchange rules require that all listed companies must advise the exchange at least 7 days before a meeting of directors is to be held at which a distribution or change in the share capital of the company is to be considered and shortly after the meeting is held advise of the result of the deliberation. Pan Jam’s board, in agreeing to a stock split earlier this year failed to inform the stock exchange in accordance with the rules, was hauled over the coals by the exchange, for failure to comply. Note is also taken that Palace approved a dividend but there was no notice on the JSE website about the meeting at which the proposal was to be considered.
The Board of Directors of Paramount Trading failed to follow the rules of the exchange regarding their decision to recommend the subdivision of stock units which was an item for shareholders to consider at the Company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) which is due to be held on Saturday, 29 October. IC Insider contacted the company to find out the reason for failing to follow the regulated procedure and was advised that the JSE informed them in writing that they did was in order. Contact with the JSE by IC Insider triggered a response that the matter would be investigated.
On Friday the company posted a release which the error. The release in part states that at the AGM that on the list of resolutions is a proposed sub-division of shares, for consideration by the shareholders.
The proposed resolution is set out in the notice of AGM as follows:“SUB-DIVISION OF SHARE CAPITAL
To sub-divide each ordinary stock unit in the capital of the Company into such number of stock units as may be prescribed by the Board: “THAT each of the issued ordinary stock units in the capital of the Company be sub-divided in accordance with the Articles of Incorporation of the Company, into such number of stock units as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors.”
“In connection with the above resolution, please be advised that the Board of the Company shall hold a meeting on Saturday, 29 October to consider and approve the sub-division pending shareholders’ approval of the said resolution.”
Pan Jam director sells 2.5m shares
There are times when trading by insiders may be significant and investors would be smart to take note of it. A recent trade in Pan Jamaican Investment Trust shares by a director seems to be worthy of note.
The company this week informed the Jamaica Stock Exchange that a Director sold 2,508,590 of the company’s shares on September 30.
The sale comes against the back ground that Pan Jamaican reported net profit attributable to owners for the quarter ended June of $867 million, compared to $853 million in the similar quarter of 2015, a mere increase of 2 percent, equivalent to basic earnings per share of 83 cents. Net profit attributable to owners for the six months ended June 30, amounted to $1,589 million, compared to $1,395 million for 2015, an increase of 14 percent, equivalent to earnings per stock unit of $1.50 compared to $1.33 for the same period in 2015.
The year to date net profit, includes the impact of a gain of $185 million realized on the sale of the group’s interest in Hardware & Lumber during the first quarter of 2016.
Stock split for Paramount Trading
Paramount puts stock split resolution to AGM in October.
No recommendation is being put to the shareholders as to the level of the split. The timing and extent of the split is proposed to be left for the directors of the company to determine. The resolution included on the agenda of the annual general meeting and included in the company’s annual report states: “That each of the issued ordinary stock units in the capital of the company be sub-divided in accordance with the Articles of Incorporation of the company, into such number of stock units as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors.”
Based on the current stock price of $17.50 and lack of supply, the split seems likely to be in the order of 5 or 6 to 1. The top 10 shareholders of Paramount own just over 95 percent of the 154.24 million shares issued by the company.
RJR & General Accident in Top 5
Prices on the Jamaica Stock Exchange are on the move again as the last quarter of the year approaches. As prices rise so does the PE ratio. The top PE in the main market is at 17 while in the junior market is around 18.
Charts of both markets show them in a bullish state, with the markets hitting higher lows and higher highs, a strong indication that they will be moving higher. More than 50 percent of main and junior market stocks are priced below the markets average PE of 9.5 and 10.4 respectively.
Against this background, IC Insider’s Top 5 selection has one new listing in the main and junior market list as Grace Kennedy and Jetcon Corporation are replace by Radio Jamaica and General Accident in position 5 and 4 respectively. Jetcon hit new highs during the week and closed at $4.70 up from $4.35 at the start of the week. Radio Jamaica earnings have been upgraded to 25 cents per share with increased revenues and cost cutting. General Accident is not without risk but earnings for 2016 are up 155 percent against a battered first half of 2015 and 2016 should better the 31 cents earned for the 2015 financial year.
AMG Packaging remains at the top of the junior market list even as the price moved up while JMMB Group is atop the main market with Caribbean Cement drops to 4th with a rise of $4 during the week. Investors attempted to trade Carib Cement at $34 but market breaker stop it from standing the stock which closed at $30 traded as high as $32. There are just six offers in the market starting at $34 and worth keeping an eye on this one for more gains this week. Barita Investments traded up to $4 during the past week and could well end back at this level during the days ahead as supply declines and demand increases.
Watch these stocks for action this week – Access Financial Services with the bid at $18.50 with no stock on offer, Blue Power with a wide gap between bid and offer, Cargo Handlers with the bid moving away from the last sale price of $86.10 with the offer at $100. Caribbean Cream with increasing demand, Caribbean Producers gaining support after poor full year results, Derrimon Trading and General Accident with bids getting stronger, Jetcon Corporation with supply and increasing interest, Medical Disposables and tTech with supplies.
From the main market the main action could come from the following, Barita Investments, Caribbean Cement, Jamaica Stock Exchange, JMMB Group, Radio Jamaica, Sagicor Group, Scotia Group, Seprod and Sterling Investments.
JSE’s directors not empowered to split stock
Directors of the Jamaica Stock Exchange approved a 5 for 1 stock split effective October 5, 2016 but the directors do not have the power to effect the change without the approval of shareholders at a general meeting.
According to a release today on the JSE website, the board of directors at a meeting approved the stock split of the company effective in October at the JSE’s board meeting held on September 21, the stock is expected to reflect the split in the price on the JSE on October 3, 2016. The release goes on to state that “as a result of the proposed stock split, the JSE will list an additional 561,000,000 ordinary shares, increasing the issued shares from 140,250,000 to 701,250,000”.
But there is a bit of a problem with the implementation of the decision. The directors have no power to effect the split. A change in the number of issued share capital has to be approved at a general meeting of the company. No resolution has been put to the shareholders at a meeting so to date and none is planned as such the decision will be voidable if legally challenged.
This development is strange as all of the several companies who have split their stock have had it approved by the shareholders at a general meeting. The latest is Cargo Handlers who have called an extraordinary meeting solely to approve it, admittedly, in this case the number of the authorised shares would be inadequate to facilitate it.
Best practice suggests that the directors should err on the side of caution even if they feel otherwise. Shareholders have the power to make fundamental changes to a company not the directors, the latter are just servants.
The Companies Act makes it very clear the subdivision of the shares must be approved in a general meeting. It is very clear directors can only recommend changes to the share capital, they have no power as directors to change it.
An extract of section 65 of the companies Act of Jamaica states.
(1) A company limited by shares or a company limited by guarantee and having a share capital, if so authorized by its articles, may alter the conditions of its articles as follows, that is to say, it may—
(a) increase its share capital by new shares of such amount as it thinks expedient;
(b) consolidate and divide all or any of its share capital into shares of larger amount than its existing shares;
(d) subdivide its shares, or any of them, into shares of smaller amount than is fixed by the articles, so, however, that in the subdivision the proportion between the amount paid and the amount, if any, unpaid on each reduced share shall be the same as it was in the case of the share from which the reduced share is derived.
(2) The powers conferred by this section must be exercised by the company in general meeting.
The company had in issue only 140 million shares with nine of the broker members holding 10 million units each leaving only a small amount to trade regularly. The stock which now sells at $27 tends to be a bit illiquid and it is expected that the split will foster greater liquidity and allow the stock to trade more freely.
Stock split who is next?
Paramount with the stock priced at $17.50 with virtually no supply seems a candidate for a stock split.
Companies on the Jamaican Stock Exchange have either announced or effected stock splits or bonuses this year, to loud applause by investors who have driven the stocks sharply upwards in response to the news.
The first to do so was Jamaican Teas with the price doubling after the announced split. Honey Bun followed with the price climbing sharply after the announcement as well as after the split. RJR did both a split and a bonus. GraceKennedy and Pan Jamaican that have seen their stock struggling for a long time at very low levels, finally getting the lift with the announcement of a stock split. Jamaica Producers effected a bonus with a similar price movement. Cargo Handlers and Jamaica Stock Exchange announced stock splits and the investors immediately responded positively to them by driving the prices up. If the trend seen with other splits holds, the prices of the stocks of the latest announcements will rise further after the split takes place.
Stock bonuses were a regular feature of the market for years until the government removed the tax incentive for them. Only the three Lasco companies split their stocks to create greater liquidity in 2014. With mostly 20 percent of junior market companies’ shares in the wider public’s hands and with some of the twenty percent closely held, supply is not always easy to come by. Splitting the stock encourages increased valuation of the companies and allows for some to be sold to the wider market, thus increasing liquidity.
Palace Amusement with a price tag of $170 and virtually no supply should be a prime candidate for a split.
There are more stock splits to come, so who are the likely candidates. One would expect that Eppley, with a $735 price tag and very limited trading activity, would be a good candidate and so would Palace, with a price of $170. Based on what has happened in the past don’t count on these two to take such action anytime soon, but the directors of these companies are going to be pressured into making a move. Management who are conscious of the valuation the market places on the stock would do the things that would boost investors’ confidence in the stock. With limited liquidity, the companies are losing out on one of the most important benefits of listing which is the constant publicity garnered from having the company’s name repeated publicly daily.
Other candidates ripe for a split include Paramount Trading, a stock that has limited supply, the company is yet to announce its annual general meeting and that seems a very good time for it to be approved. Blue Power now priced at $21 with very little supply is a prime stock for such action. Others that could well do it are Access Financial Services,
AMG Packaging with a new chairman who is stock market friendly could deliver a split sooner than later.
AMG Packaging with a change in chairmanship who is a stock market follower should land a split sooner than later and Knutsford Express in the junior market.
There appear to be few main market stocks that need to consider one but National Commercial Bank with the price struggling around $40 with good results could well do one to increase investors’ interest and so could Scotia Group and of course Montego Ice.
If stock splits are so popular in Jamaica, why is it not being used in Trinidad that only has limited trading taking place daily. Management is depriving their company of maximum exposure for the cost of listing and preventing their shareholders from enjoying a more liquid market in which to trade.
ISP $150M arsenal for expansion
ISP Finance got the money to expand lending
The bonds provide an arsenal funds that will allow for a major expansion of the company’s loan portfolio at a huge spread. At the end of December 2015, the company’s loan portfolio, before loan loss provision stood at $304 million and grew marginally to J$305 million at the end of June. After loan loss provision of $70 million, it stood at $234 million as of June this year versus $241 million at December and is up from the $225 million at the end of March 2016. The new funds should aid in a major increase in lending and should result in as welling of profits. In addition to these fresh cash injection, the company will have funds generated from profits to lend as well.
The Company will apply to the Jamaica Stock Exchange to list the bonds.
Buy stocks before the explosion
Image courtesy of suphakit73/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Both markets have some appealing choices that offer investors a great deal of potential upside. Investors have been making big mistakes by ignoring these opportunities. The errors keep showing in junior market stocks where many wait until prices start to move before trying to buy, at which time the volumes dry up and prices have to move steeply for sellers to be induced to dispose of stocks. Recent cases in point are, ISP Finance, the stock was available under $3 but there were very few buyers, now there are many buyers with bids in the $6 region, a level at which there has been no stock offered for sale since it traded nearly 23,000 units at $6, earlier in September. Jetcon Corporation is another case, with the stock trading below the $3 level for a long time until recently, even as the profit of the company is running at almost twice the pace of 2015, now they are more investors interested at the higher prices at a time when the supply has evaporated. Caribbean Cream is yet another, with IC Insider pointing to strong increase in profits for a long time, now buyers are in at much higher prices but supply is limited. tTech is yet another example with the stock trading for a long time in the $4 region now there is virtually no supply as interest in the stocks grows.
While some investors focus on trailing quarterly earnings as the basis for valuing stocks, they tend to miss out on companies with explosive growth in profits. There is also the tendency to ignore one off time items. The case of Caribbean Cement is an excellent one. A Brokerage house has the earnings at just over $2 for 2016, but the ongoing earnings are likely to be in the $5.50 region for 2016 and this is what they should be using to value the company. Investors seem to miss the main point. The company incurred cost for reducing labour which will show up as lower operating cost in future periods, but investors don’t seem to appreciate that fact, added to what now appears to be an economy that is growing and could grow even more making Cement, a huge buy. The same can be said for National Commercial Bank and Scotia Group that are having a great 2016.An indication of where values could reach based on this year’s earnings can be gleaned from three stocks selling at PE ratios that are 16 to 17.5 times this year’s earnings with 11 out of the 29 junior listings having a PE of 10 times or more with, an average of 13.5. The average of the junior market is now at 10 times 2016 earnings with several stocks selling below. In the main market the top 11 stocks average PE is just over 15 with the overall average for the market at 9.
Based on close of the market on Friday the stocks to watch in the coming week are AMG Packaging that fell back sharply in the past week and is on IC Insiders top 5 junior market buys, Blue Power with limited supply. Cargo Handlers still in demand with the announcement of the 10 to 1 stock split and with the bid at $87.05 versus the last sale of $86.10. Caribbean Cream with limited supply and increased buying, Honey Bun with good demand and declining supply, but the price could be heavy with a PE of 17. The 2016 fiscal year ends this month, so investors may want to focus on the 2017 numbers as the main reason for buying. ISP Finance with no supply but with bid at $6.50 compared to last sale of $6 and with the success of the $150 million bond issue, could move if some supply appear.
Scotiabank with profit up 47% for the July quarter the stock could be very active this week.
Main market activity has been fluid, there are no indications from Friday’s trading, that there will be much change. Investors should keep an eye on Barita Investments, IC Insider’s Top stock in the main market, with bids at $3.51 at the close on Friday, compared with a last sale price of $3.25. There are currently only 5 offers on the board, amounting to 70,000 units and Scotia Group that is set to report earnings for 2016 in the region of $4 per share, after reporting a 47 percent jump in the July quarter. Investors may want to keep an eye out for Cable & Wireless that could well report decent profit for the 12 months to March next year. Note the company’s year end is set to change to December.