Shareholders of Jamaican Teas approved a three for one stock split effective November 30 at a meeting held by the Company on Tuesday. The record date for the split is Monday, November 30, but the stocks go ex split on Friday, November 27 and will commence trading at the post-split price on that day.
John Mahfood CEO and Director of Jamaican Teas addressing the EGM.
In an update to shareholders at the meeting on recent developments within the Group and the outturn for the year to September, they were advised of the continued growth the Group experienced since listing in 2010 with equity moving from $392 million to $1.8 billion at the end of September, this year. Management advised that helped by good results for 2020, the Group moved from a billion-dollar entity to a $2 billion one measured by sales that closed the past fiscal year at $2.2 billion.
Management considers one of the highlights of the recently concluded quarter to be the strong 65 percent gain in export sales over the prior year as well as exports accounting for 65 percent of total manufacturing sales in the quarter. The level of exports meets one of the objectives set at the time the Company went public in 2010.
Early indications and feedback from our overseas customers point to a continuation of the positive trend in exports for the 2021 financial year, the meeting was told.
While exports were dominant, domestic sales did relatively well, with local manufacturing sales increasing 17 percent over 2019. Overall, sales climbed 44 percent to $407 million in the fourth quarter, shareholders were informed. The Real estate division contributed $240 million in sales and is set to contribute around $160 million in the December quarter.
The Group had a disappointing year in the investment division, as it incurred a loss with the fall in the value of local investments but saw some improvement in the second half of the fiscal year, with profit in both quarters. Management expressed the view that there should be an improvement in its fortunes in the new year.
Net profit attributable to Jamaican Teas for the quarter was $131 million, a decline of 27 percent from the $180 million profit in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. For the full year, net profit attributable to Jamaican Teas was $210 million, a decline of 47 percent from the $400 million generated in the previous year.
After the year-end, Jamaican Teas had increased sales of 47 percent in October 2020 over 2019, with export up a robust 85 percent and a much less robust 10 percent for domestic sales. Orders in hand for November suggest a continuation of the positive trend seen in October.
Jamaican Teas’ shareholder – Mr. Lanzel Bloomfield addressing the EGM
The Group will be booking more real estate sales in the December quarter. With the above developments, management expects a good first quarter for the financial year ending September 2021. The Group plans to commence a major expansion of the factory to meet the increasing demand for its manufacturing products.
Since the company advised the JSE on September 29 that the board would meet to set a date for the three-for-one stock split, the price rose by 56 percent to $6.70. The stock traded at $4.30 on the day of the announcement. The release was posted after trading closed. The next trading day, the price jumped to $4.83 with 161,040 shares trading. On the first day of October, the price moved to $5.02 with 1,099,894 shares trading. The stock traded at $5.50 on Monday last week. On Tuesday, it traded at $5.99 and moved $6.30 on Wednesday and $6.70 on Thursday and Friday.
