The Jamaica Stock Exchange pulled back from the pre new year’s bounce enjoyed in the last two weeks of 2022 and still retained some of those gains as trading commenced in the new year, with activity in the ICTOP10 quite muted and resulting in no new entrant to the Top Stock list, but there were a few outstanding price movements.
Junior Market action resulted in General Accident popping 11 percent to $4.91, followed by Lasco Distributors with a 5 percent rise to $2.63, but Paramount Trading lost 23 percent to close at $1.53 in a week when only three stocks declining, with the others slipping just one percent.
In the Main Market, Guardian Holdings dropped 8 percent to $524 and Jamaica Broilers fell 4 percent to $29.61 and were the only notable price changes.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 5.6, well below the market average of 14.4. At the same time, the Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 6.1 versus the market at 12.7, important indicators of the level of the undervaluation of the ICTOP10 stocks. 
The Junior Market is projected to rise by 231 percent and the Main Market TOP10, an average now of 278 percent, to May 2023.
The Junior Market has 15 stocks, 32 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 32, averaging 19 compared with the above average of the market. The top half of the market has an average PE of 18 and shows the extent of potential gains for the TOP10 stocks. The situation in the Main Market is similar, with the 19 highest valued stocks priced at a PE of 15 to 100, with an average of 31 and 23 excluding the highest valued ones and 26 for the top half excluding the highest valued stock.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners, accordingly, the list includes some of the best companies in the market but not always. 
ICInsider.com ranks stocks based on projected earnings, allowing investors to focus on the most undervalued stocks and helping to remove emotions in selecting stocks for investments that often result in costly mistakes.
IC TOP10 stocks are likely to deliver the best returns up to the end of May 2023 and are ranked in order of potential gains, computed using projected earnings for the current fiscal year. Expected values will change as stock prices fluctuate, resulting in weekly movements in and out of the lists. Revisions to earnings are ongoing, based on receipt of new information.
Look out for the 2023 TOP15 stock listing that is coming soon.
Persons who compiled this report may have an interest in securities commented on in this report.
