The Jamaica Stock Exchange closed another day of trading with prices mostly down and taking a big trunk of the market indices, with it declining for a second day by more than 7,000 points.
The Main Market of the At the close, the JSE All Jamaican Composite Index dived 7,617.05 points to 427,779.79, the JSE Market Index dropped 7,118.10 points to 389,754.82 and the JSE Financial Index slid 2.36 points to 106.
The market closed with 49 securities changing hands in the Main and US dollar markets with prices of 16 stocks advancing, 22 declining and 11 securities trading firm. The JSE Main Market activity ended with 44 securities accounting for 146,823,904 units valued at $296,270,700, in contrast to 53,531,710 units valued at $153,340,745 from 44 securities on Wednesday.
Radio Jamaica led trading with 95 million shares for 65 percent of total volume followed Trans Jamaican Highway, with 36.6 million units for 25 percent of the day’s trade and Wigton Windfarm with 7.7 million units for 5 percent market share. Other stocks trading more than one million units were Jamaica Broilers with 2.6 million units and Sagicor Select Financial Fund with 2.7 million units.
The Market closed with an average of 3,336,907 units valued at $6,733,425 for each security traded, in contrast to 1,216,630 units valued at an average of $3,485,017 on Wednesday. The average volume and value for the month to date amount to 1,022,515 units valued at $4,256,393 for each security changing hands, compared to 779,477 units valued at $3,967,296 for each security traded. Trading in March resulted in an average of 1,146,245 units valued at $7,550,295 for each security.
IC bid-offer Indicator│ At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading shows eleven stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and six stocks closing with lower offers. The PE ratio of the market ended at 14.1, while the Main Market ended at 14.5 times 2020/21 earnings.
In the Main Market, Barita Investments shed 51 cents trading 25,513 units and closed at $56, Berger Paints exchanged 1,045 stock units at $12.62, with a loss of $1.38, Caribbean Cement gained $1 to finish at $49, in transferring 38,537 units. Eppley fell $2.20 to $14.80, with 31,034 units changing hands, Eppley Caribbean Property Fund declined by $2 to $34, after trading 3,920 stock units, Jamaica Producers closed 49 cents lower to $20 after swapping 4,497 units. Jamaica Stock Exchange ended at $22.17, with a loss of $1.43 in transferring 112,597 shares, JMMB Group added 78 cents to finish at $36.79, in an exchange of 55,004 shares, Kingston Wharves picked up 42 cents and closed at $44, with 26,422 units changing hands. MPC Caribbean Clean Energy sustained a loss of $33 in swapping 499 units and closed at $150, NCB Financial Group fell 50 cents to $155.50 trading 35,964 units, PanJam Investment shed 85 cents to close at $75.98, with an exchange of 9,929 stock units. Portland JSX picked up 80 cents in trading only one stock unit to end at $8.90, Sagicor Group finished at $49.75, with a loss of 77 cents in exchanging 86,774 shares, Salada Foods closed at $28.50, after losing $4.95 in exchanging 10,299 units. Scotia Group gained 39 cents swapping 50,079 shares and closed at $47.89, Seprod climbed $2 to $46, with 18,441 units crossing the exchange, Stanley Motta slipped 38 cents to $4.62, in swapping 4,200 stock units and Victoria Mutual Investments ended at $7.50, with a loss of 30 cents while transferring 420,041 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.