Tuesday was another record breaking day on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, with the market Index popping 35.96 points to a new record close of 4,384.22 after the market opened just over 4,202 points but drifted lower after and closed, with the volume of stocks changing hands rising 56 percent and the value 23 percent higher than on Monday.
Some 42 securities traded against 43 on Monday, with 18 rising, 17 declining and seven unchanged.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 13.7. Junior Market PE ratios incorporate ICInsider.com projected earnings for companies with financial years closing up to the end of August 2023.
A total of 14,524,296 shares traded for $53,604,474 compared to 9,311,516 units at $43,681,007 on the Monday. Tropical Battery led trading with 2.82 million shares for 19.4 percent of total volume, followed by iCreate, 1.44 million units for 9.9 percent of the day’s trade, Spur Tree Spices chipped in with 1.34 million units for 9.2 percent market share. JFP Limited ended with 1.29 million units for 8.9 percent market share, Medical Disposables exchanged 1.15 million units for 7.9 percent market share and Lumber Depot closed with 1.12 million units for 7.7 percent market share.
Trading averaged 345,817 shares at $1,276,297 in contrast to 216,547 shares at $1,015,837 on Monday, with the month to date, averaging 430,328 units at $1,635,995 compared to 435,831 units at $1,659,417 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows two stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and none with a lower offer.
At the close, Access Financial declined 69 cents in closing at $20.38 in switching ownership of 3,206 shares, CAC 2000 gained 20 cents to close at $7.40 in trading 65 units, Caribbean Assurance Brokers shed 34 cents, to end at $2.56, with the swapping of 37,066 stock units. Consolidated Bakeries rallied 10 cents to $1.30 in an exchange of 513,167 stocks, Dolphin Cove dropped 40 cents to $23 after exchanging 5,524 stocks, EduFocal lost 17 cents to end at $3.22 with an exchange of 859,952 stock units. Express Catering increased 32 cents in ending at $6.49 while exchanging 11,127 units, Fontana fell 29 cents in closing at $11 after finishing trading 207,790 shares, Fosrich rose 35 cents to $28.35 after trading 151,846 stock units. Honey Bun climbed 27 cents to close at $9.30, with 21,470 shares clearing the market, iCreate dropped 73 cents to $2.33, with 1,442,863 stocks crossing the market, Indies Pharma popped 14 cents to end at $3.29, with 55,131 units crossing the market. Jetcon Corporation advanced 30 cents to close at $1.80 after 823,775 shares crossed the exchange, Lasco Manufacturing climbed 10 cents in closing at $5.10 after trading 26,510 stocks, Lumber Depot advanced 11 cents to $3.56 in exchanging 1,124,459 units. 
Main Event increased 58 cents to close at $9.58, with an exchange of 98,341 stock units, Spur Tree Spices popped 21 cents to $3.91, with 1,339,807 shares changing hands, SSL Venture lost 10 cents in closing at $1.58, with 21,001 stock units clearing the market. Stationery and Office Supplies declined 85 cents ending at $8.25, trading 27,093 units, Tropical Battery rose 11 cents to end at $2.85, with 2,822,833 stocks crossing the market and tTech fell 26 cents and ended at $3.79 after an exchange of 1,556 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Junior Market drops on Monday
Trading closed on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Monday, with the volume of stocks trading declining 25 percent and the value 3 percent lower than the outturn on Friday.
A total of 43 securities traded versus 44 on Friday and ended with 18 rising, 17 declining and eight closing unchanged. The Junior Market Index shed 21.68 points to settle at 4,348.26 at the close.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 13.8. The Junior Market PE ratios incorporate ICInsider.com projected earnings for companies with financial years closing up to the end of August 2023.
Overall, 9,311,516 shares traded for $43,681,007 versus 12,348,074 units at $45,037,672 on the Friday. Elite Diagnostic led trading with 1.2 million shares for 12.9 percent of total volume followed by iCreate with 1.16 million units for 12.4 percent of the day’s trading and Jetcon Corporation with 857,533 units for 9.2 percent market share.
Trading averaged 216,547 shares at $1,015,837 in contrast to 280,638 shares at $1,023,583 on Friday with month to date, averaging 435,831 units at $1,659,417 compared to 451,494 units at $1,705,387 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows three stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, AMG Packaging increased 30 cents to $3.80 with an exchange of 68,423 shares, Blue Power lost 50 cents to end at $3.50, with 300 stocks changing hands, CAC 2000 fell 20 cents to end at $7.20 in trading 3,548 units. Cargo Handlers advanced $1.05 to close at $12, with 35,218 stock units clearing the market, Caribbean Cream gained 19 cents in closing at $5.19 after exchanging 61,480 units, Dolphin Cove popped $1.40 to $23.40 with the swapping of 95,344 stocks. Everything Fresh rose 16 cents to end at $1.46 in exchanging 8,452 stock units, Fontana climbed 29 cents to $11.29 after trading 137,061 shares, Fosrich shed 13 cents to close at $28 and closed with the trading of 397,141 stocks after the price hit an intraday record high of $29.25. General Accident dropped 19 cents in closing at $5.98, with 11,000 shares crossing the market, Honey Bun declined 94 cents to $9.03, after 34,453 stock units crossed the market, Indies Pharma shed 10 cents to end at $3.15 while exchanging 400,386 units. 
Jamaican Teas lost 23 cents to close at $3.56 after finishing trading of 572,462 stock units, Jetcon Corporation rallied 10 cents in closing at $1.50 in switching ownership of 857,533 stocks, Lasco Financial advanced 12 cents to $3.40 after exchanging 62,597 units. Lasco Manufacturing fell 33 cents in closing at $5 in an exchange of 26,238 shares, Lumber Depot declined 13 cents to close at $3.45 with 279,132 shares changing hands and Main Event gained 82 cents to $9 in exchanging 37,940 stock units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Former ICTOP10 stock jumps 130%
The star performer for the week was iCreate, up 132 percent and Supreme Ventures, with a 30 percent price movement in the market during the week, but several ICTOP10 stocks had some noted moves as well.
iCreate hits a low of 80 cents on Thursday.
iCreate, more than doubled, surging from the previous week’s $1.36 close to $3.16. The move coincides primarily with two acquisition announcements with little or no information given as to the cost and funding, leading to wild speculation in the stock. Supreme Ventures (SVL) stock jumped to a 52 weeks’ high of $33.41 from $24.49 at the end of the previous week. The SVL was more solidly based as the company reported solid increased profits for the March quarter as investors pushed the price sharply higher in response.
There are two changes to this week’s ICTOP10 listing. Lasco Distributors returns to the Junior Market TOP10 as Stationery and Office Supplies slipped out. The latter rose 15 percent to close the week at $9.11. The expectations are that the company will have blowout first quarter results, helped by school opening and following a strong 2021 fourth quarter. The Main Market welcomed back Jamaica Stock Exchange share that will benefit from an upsurge in trading activity in the first quarter as Scotia Group fell out, still looking attractively priced at $35.20, with Bank of Jamaica increasing interest rates is positively impacting the results.
The Junior Market ended with three stocks rising from 8 to 15 percent. Caribbean Assurance Brokers climbed 10 percent for the week while Jetcon Corporation rose 8 percent to close at $1.40. Declining were Lasco Financial, down 8 percent and Access Financial and AMG Packaging, down 5 percent, as buying eased markedly following improved results released at the close of the market ahead of the Easter weekend. Investors seem not to be factoring in cost savings and increased efficiency that the newly installed machine brings to the business following the close of the recent quarter. With a 5 percent rise, Guardian Holdings was the biggest mover in the Main Market.
The average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 ends the week at 6.2, well below the market average of 14.8, while the Junior Market PE for the Top 10 sits at 6 versus the market at 13.8. The Junior Market TOP10 is projected to gain an average of 249 percent by May 2023 and the Main Market 200 percent.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners; accordingly, the list may or may not include the best companies in the market. ICInsider.com ranks stocks based on projected earnings to highlight winners from the rest, allowing investors to focus on potential winning stocks and helping to remove emotional attachments to stocks that often result in costly mistakes.
IC TOP10 stocks are likely to deliver the best returns up to the end of May 2023. They are ranked in order of potential gains, based on the possible increase for each company, considering the earnings and PE ratios for the current fiscal year. Expected values will change as stock prices fluctuate and result in weekly movements in and out of the lists. Revisions to earnings are ongoing, based on receipt of new information.
Persons who compiled this report may have an interest in securities commented on in this report.
4 consecutive record Junior Market close
Trading closed on Friday with the Junior Market Index climbing 44.79 points to settle at a closing record high of 4,369.94, with four consecutive record closings and ended with a rise of 27.5 percent for the year to date, just two percentage points from the entire year gains in 2021.
As was the case on Thursday, 44 securities traded on Friday and ended with 22 rising, eight declining and 14 unchanged.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to determine stock values, averages 13.8. The Junior Market PE ratios incorporate projected earnings computed by ICInsider.com for companies with financial years closing up to the end of August 2023.
The volume of stocks traded rose 16 percent more, with a value of 5 percent less than on Thursday. Overall, 12,348,074 shares traded for $45,037,672 compared to 10,631,744 units at $47,631,025 on Thursday. Indies Pharma led trading with 2.39 million shares for 19.4 percent of total volume, followed by iCreate with 1.79 million units for 14.5 percent of the day’s trade and JFP Limited with 1.35 million units for 10.9 percent market share.
Trading averaged 280,638 shares at $1,023,583 in contrast to 241,631 shares at $1,082,523 on Thursday with month to date, averaging 451,494 units at $1,705,387 compared to 464,966 units at $1,759,149 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows one stock ended with a bid higher than the last selling price and two with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial rose $1 to $21, after 19,254 shares crossed the market, Blue Power popped 20 cents to close at $4, with 29,889 stock units clearing the market, Cargo Handlers climbed 80 cents in closing at $10.95 after exchanging 500 stocks. Caribbean Assurance Brokers increased 35 cents ending at $2.85 with the swapping of 135,650 units, Dolphin Cove gained 40 cents to end at $22, with 65,079 stock units changing hands, Elite Diagnostic rallied 19 cents to $3.79 in an exchange of 209,048 shares. Fontana advanced 11 cents in closing at $11 after trading 134,843 units, Fosrich dropped $1.07 after ending at $28.13 in switching ownership of 105,699 stocks, iCreate rallied 59 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ high of $3.10 after exchanging 1,789,801 stock units. Indies Pharma gained 15 cents to close at $3.25 while trading 2,391,948 shares, Iron Rock Insurance lost 25 cents in closing at $3.50, with 3,587 units crossing the exchange, Jetcon Corporation increased 11 cents to end at $1.40, with 515,419 stocks crossing the market.
KLE Group rose 31 cents to $2.67 in exchanging 305 stocks, Lasco Manufacturing climbed 33 cents to close at $5.33 with 42,274 stock units changing hands, Mailpac Group rose 14 cents to $3.27 with an exchange of 180,175 shares and Stationery and Office Supplies popped 31 cents in ending at $9.11 after trading 40,070 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Another record high for Junior Market
Trading closed at another record high on the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market on Thursday, after hitting an intraday high at the opening, with the volume of stocks traded falling by 38 percent and the value down 36 percent compared to Wednesday.
Market activity led to 44 securities trading compared to 42 on Wednesday and ending with 17 rising, 17 declining and 10 closing unchanged.
At the close, the Junior Market Index rose 35.62 points to a record of 4,325.15 after opening at a record 4,371.90. The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 13.4. The PE ratio of each stock in the chart below is based on ICInsider.com earnings forecast for companies with financial years up to August 2023.
Overall, 10,631,744 shares traded for $47,631,025 from 17,123,040 units at $73,979,105 on Wednesday. iCreate led trading with 1.68 million shares for 15.8 percent of total volume followed by Stationery and Office Supplies with 937,462 units for 8.8 percent of the day’s trade and Tropical Battery with 885,188 units for 8.3 percent market share.
Trading averaged 241,631 shares at $1,082,523 compared to 407,691 shares at $1,761,407 on Wednesday, with the month to date, averaging 464,966 units at $1,759,149 compared to 484,085 units at $1,817,071 on Wednesday the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows two stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two stocks with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial shed $1 to end at $20, with 35,750 shares clearing the market, AMG Packaging dropped 45 cents in closing at $3.50 with the swapping of 149,520 stock units, CAC 2000 fell 10 cents to close at $7.40 with an exchange of 1,055 stocks. Dolphin Cove climbed 10 cents to $21.60, with 896 units changing hands, EduFocal declined 19 cents in ending at $3.48 while exchanging 546,443 stock units, Elite Diagnostic lost 57 cents in closing at $3.60 after trading 773,735 units. Fontana advanced 44 cents to close at $10.89, with 100,573 stocks crossing the market, Fosrich rose $2.30 to a record $29.20 after exchanging 198,511 shares, Honey Bun gained 30 cents after ending at $9.90, with 32,555 units crossing the market. iCreate rallied 57 cents to end at record $2.51 trading 1,676,041 stock units, Lasco Financial fell 12 cents to $3.28 after trading 735,706 stocks, Lasco Manufacturing dropped 19 cents to $5 in an exchange of 138,845 shares. Mailpac Group declined 15 cents to close at $3.13 units 385,703 crossing the exchange, 
Main Event popped 20 cents to $8.10 in exchanging 113,177 shares, Paramount Trading shed 23 cents in closing at $1.91 in switching ownership of 54,862 stocks. SSL Venture increased 35 cents to end at $1.75 trading 570 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies lost 30 cents to close at $8.80 after exchanging 937,462 shares and tTech rallied 30 cents to $4.05 in switching ownership of 3,800 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Record high for Junior Market again
Investors pushed up stocks to record highs during trading on Wednesday, leading to the suspension of five stocks for breaching the circuit breaker limit on the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market in the morning session. The market hit new record highs, aided by Fosrich that jumped to a record $27 before closing at $26.90 after announcing a proposal for the board to consider the recommendation of a stock split and rights issue later this year.
New record high for the JSE Junior Market.
Trading ended with 60 percent more shares with 96 percent increased value than Tuesday. Market activity led to 42 securities trading, compared to 43 on Tuesday, ending with 15 rising, 23 declining and four closing unchanged. The Junior Market Index rose 20.80 points to settle at a record close of 4,289.53 after hitting a record intraday high of 4,316.66. Three stocks ended trading at 52 weeks’ closing highs, with Paramount traded at a 52 weeks’ intraday high of $2.85, while Tropical Battery traded at a record high of $2.85 before pulling back to close at a 52 weeks’ high of $2.69.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 13.6. The PE ratio of each stock in the chart below is based on ICInsider.com earnings forecast for companies with financial years up to August 2023.
Overall, 17,123,040 shares traded valued $73,979,105, up from 10,723,885 units at $37,772,473 on the Tuesday. Jamaican Teas led trading with 4.29 million shares for 25 percent of total volume, followed by iCreate, 1.57 million units for 9.2 percent of the day’s trade, 
Elite Diagnostic traded 1.53 million units for 8.9 percent of market share. Tropical Battery had an exchange of 1.33 million units for 7.7 percent market share and Derrimon Trading ended with 1.03 million units for 6 percent market share.
Trading averaged 407,691 shares at $1,761,407 up from 249,393 shares at $878,430 on Tuesday with the month to date, averaging 484,085 units at $1,817,071 compared to 490,882 units at $1,822,024 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows five stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial lost 50 cents to close at $21, with 2,228 shares crossing the exchange, Blue Power rallied 20 cents to $3.80 in trading 100 stock units, Dolphin Cove dropped 25 cents in closing at $21.50, with 146,987 units crossing the market. EduFocal declined 10 cents to $3.67 after exchanging 662,463 stocks, Elite Diagnostic fell 43 cents to end at $4.17, with 1,532,056 stock units crossing the market, Fontana shed 45 cents to close at $10.45 with an exchange of 129,040 shares. Fosrich surged $4.90 in ending at a record high of $26.90 after exchanging 693,741 stocks, General Accident advanced 17 cents to close at $6.17 in an exchange of 11,236 units, Honey Bun fell 25 cents in closing at $9.60, with 33,389 stocks changing hands. iCreate popped 32 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ high of $1.94 in exchanging 1,570,186 stock units, Jamaican Teas rallied 54 cents to $3.95 with the swapping of 4,288,461 units, KLE Group declined 33 cents in closing at $2.35 while exchanging 4,396 shares. 
Lasco Financial dropped 10 cents to close at $3.40 in switching ownership of 2,103 stocks, Lasco Manufacturing climbed 19 cents to end at $5.19 after trading 98,218 units, Mailpac Group gained 14 cents ending at $3.28 after trading 382,107 stock units. Main Event shed 10 cents to close at $7.90, with 110,989 shares clearing the market, Spur Tree Spices rose 10 cents to end at $3.70 as 559,615 shares changed hands, SSL Venture lost 42 cents in closing at $1.40 in switching ownership of 524,914 stock units and Stationery and Office Supplies rallied $1.18 to $9.10 while exchanging 55,375 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
New record close for Junior Market
The Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market continues to hit new highs as the market index crossed over the 4,300 points mark in early trading on Tuesday but ended lower as to end at a record closing high of 4,268.73 after recording a gain of 15.47 points at the close.
A new record closing high for the JSE Junior Market.
Market activity led to 43 securities trading similar to trading on Thursday and ended with 17 rising, 20 declining and six closing unchanged. AMG Packaging, Elite Diagnostic and iCreate all ended at new 52 weeks’ closing highs.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 13. The PE ratio of each stock in the chart below is based on ICInsider.com earnings forecast for companies with financial years up to August 2023.
Trading closed on Tuesday, with the volume of stocks traded declining 82 percent and the value dropping by 84 percent versus Thursday and ended with 10,723,885 shares traded for $37,772,473, down from 59 575,175 units at $234,063,113 on Thursday. Elite Diagnostic led trading with 1.67 million shares for 15.6 percent of total volume, followed by Derrimon Trading with 1.41 million units for 13.1 percent of the day’s trade and iCreate, 1.17 million units for 10.9 percent market share.
Trading averaged 249,393 shares at $878,430 versus strong>1,385,469 shares at $5,443,328 on Thursday with the month to date, averaging 490,882 units at $1,822,024 compared to 515,088 units at $1,916,603 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows five stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and one with a lower offer.
At the close, Access Financial dropped 50 cents to $21.50 in switching ownership of 858 shares, AMG Packaging rose 30 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ closing high of $4 after trading 572,834 stocks after trading at an intraday record high of $4.50, following the release of a continued surge in profit for the current fiscal year. Blue Power lost 49 cents in closing at $3.60 in exchanging 246 units. CAC 2000 advanced 50 cents to close at $7.50, with 71 stock units clearing the market, Cargo Handlers fell 85 cents to $10.15 with 332 shares changing hands, Caribbean Cream increased 20 cents to end at $5, with 91,196 stocks changing hands. Dolphin Cove declined $1.12 to $21.75 in trading 171,740 stock units, Elite Diagnostic rallied 93 cents in closing at 52 weeks’ high of $4.60 with the swapping of 1,669,094 units, Express Catering shed 21 cents to close at $6.22 after exchanging 36,254 stocks. Fosrich dropped 11 cents to $22 after finishing trading 10,434 units, Honey Bun popped 25 cents in closing at $9.85after exchanging 11,638 stock units, iCreate gained 26 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ high of $1.62 after trading 1,167,102 shares. Indies Pharma climbed 15 cents in ending at $3.15 with an exchange of 51,451 shares, ISP Finance shed 45 cents to close at $29.50, with 20 stocks crossing the market, Jamaican Teas fell 13 cents to end at $3.41 while exchanging 489,230 stock units. 
Lasco Manufacturing declined 20 cents to $5, with 158,121 units crossing the market, Main Event popped 15 cents to $8 in an exchange of 18,153 units, Paramount Trading increased 42 cents in closing at $2.18 in exchanging 800,157 stocks after the company posted nine months results showing continued improvement in earnings. Tropical Battery gained 17 cents to close at $2.68 in switching ownership of 503,264 stock units and tTech lost 20 cents in ending at $3.80 after 2,218 shares changed hands.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
ICTOP10 stocks score big gains
The action in the ICTOP10 listing the holiday shortened week shifted from Main Market stocks to the Junior Market, with four stocks putting in double digit increases, led by Elite Diagnostic, last week’s 14 percent decliner to rally this week by a stunning 43 percent to close at $3.67 after hitting a high in the past week of $4.23.
But Elite is not the only Junior Market stock posting solid gains. Jetcon rose 18 percent to close at $1.30, against a background of one or more investors seeking to buy a sizable number of shares. AMG Packaging and Caribbean Assurance Brokers climbed 16 percent while tTech added 7 percent to close the week at $4. Price movements in Main Market were more subdued than in the Junior Market, with JMMB Group the biggest mover dropping 11 percent from $51.89 to $46.25, followed by Guardian Holdings with a fall of 4 percent.
General Accident returned to the Junior Market TOP10 as tTech dropped out and VM Investments returns to the Top10 Main Market as Jamaica Stock Exchange fell out.
The average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 6.2, well below the market average of 14.7, while the Junior Market PE for the Top 10 is at 5.9 versus the market at 13.2. The Junior Market TOP10 is projected to gain an average of 289 percent to May 2023 and the Main Market 192 percent.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners, accordingly, the list may or may not include the best companies in the market. 
ICInsider.com ranks stocks based on projected earnings to highlight winners from the rest, allowing investors to focus on potential winning stocks and helping to remove emotional attachments to stocks 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, based on the possible increase for each company, considering the earnings and PE ratios for the current fiscal year. Expected values will change as stock prices fluctuate and result in weekly movements in and out of the lists. Revisions to earnings are ongoing, based on receipt of new information.
Persons who compiled this report may have an interest in securities commented on in this report.
Junior Market trading jumps ahead of holidays
Trading levels jumped on the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market on Thursday, with the volume of stocks traded surging 383 percent and the value jumping 453 percent higher than on Wednesday, Jamaican Teas and EduFocal controlling 79 percent of the volume.
Jamaican Teas was the leading trade with 34 million shares on Thursday.
Market activity led to 43 securities trading compared to 44 on Wednesday and ended with 20 rising, 15 declining and eight closing unchanged. At the close, the Junior Market Index advanced 20.89 points to 4,253.26.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 13.2. The PE ratio of each stock in the chart below is based on ICInsider.com earnings forecast for companies with financial years up to August 2023.
Overall, 59,575,175 shares were traded for $234,063,113 compared to 12,336,057 units at $42,328,019 on the Wednesday. Jamaican Teas led trading with 34 million shares for 57.1 percent of total volume, followed by EduFocal with 12.84 million units for 21.6 percent of the day’s trade and Honey Bun with 4.03 million units for 6.8 percent market share. Elite Diagnostic chipped in with 1.34 million units for 2.3 percent market share, Derrimon Trading, 1.25 million units for 2.1 percent market share and Tropical Battery ended with 1.06 million units for 1.8 percent market share.
Trading averaged 1,385,469 shares at $5,443,328 up from 280,365 shares at $962,000 on Wednesday with the month to date, averaging 515,088 units at $1,916,603 compared to 418,128 units at $1,523,729 on the previous trading day. Trading in March averaged 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows two stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial rose 11 cents to $22 with the swapping of 135,553 shares, AMG Packaging gained 15 cents in ending at $3.70 after exchanging 444,178 units, Blue Power rallied 49 cents to $4.09 trading 16,610 stocks. CAC 2000 shed 50 cents to end at $7 as 3,801 stock units were traded, Caribbean Assurance Brokers declined 10 cents to close at $2.60 while exchanging 89,226 stocks, Caribbean Cream dropped 19 cents to $4.80 in switching ownership of 7,655 stock units. Dolphin Cove climbed $1.07 to end at $22.87 in an exchange of 9,428 shares, Elite Diagnostic fell 12 cents to $3.67 after 1,344,708 units crossed the market, Express Catering popped 28 cents in closing at $6.43 after finishing trading of 12,500 shares. Fontana popped 90 cents to close at $10.90 in trading 84,769 units, Fosrich lost $1.69 to end at $22.11, with 68,399 stock units changing hands, Honey Bun dropped 35 cents to close at $9.60 after exchanging 4,026,875 stocks. iCreate advanced 16 cents in closing at a 52 weeks’ high of $1.36 after trading 773,133 shares, Indies Pharma advanced 15 cents to $3, with 83,580 units crossing the market, Jamaican Teas increased 10 cents ending at $3.54 after 34,000,140 stock units crossed the exchange but only after the price hit an intraday 52 weeks’ low of 43.01.
Jetcon Corporation rose 12 cents to end at $1.30, clearing the market with 468,547 stocks, KLE Group popped 10 cents in closing at $2.68 with an exchange of 24 shares, Main Event shed 29 cents to close at $7.85, with 119,562 units crossing the market. Stationery and Office Supplies rallied 68 cents in ending at $7.95 with the swapping of 218,236 stocks and tTech lost 13 cents to $4, trading 75 stock units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
New Junior Market record but index ends lower
Trading closed on Wednesday, on the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior Market, with the volume of and the value of stocks traded declining by 43 percent and 47 percent lower respectively compared to trading on Tuesday and ended with the Market index closing 14.36 points lower to settle at 4,232.37 after the market opened at an intraday record high of 4,303.77.
As was the case on Tuesday, trading was broad-based with 44 securities changing hands and ended with prices of 22 rising, declining and 11 closing unchanged.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 12.8. The PE ratio of each stock in the chart below is based on ICInsider.com earnings forecast for companies with financial years up to August 2023.
Overall, 12,336,057 shares traded for $42,328,019, down from 21,499,543 units at $79,329,070 on the Tuesday. Indies Pharma led trading with 2.67 million shares for 21.6 percent of total volume followed by Lumber Depot with 1.28 million units for 10.4 percent of the day’s trade and Express Catering with 1.05 million units or 8.5 percent market share.
Trading averaged 280,365 shares at $962,000 in contrast to 488,626 shares at $1,802,933 on Tuesday with the month to date, averaging 418,128 units at $1,523,729 compared to 435,852 units at $1,595,999 on Tuesday the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 719,276 units at $2,636,802.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows two stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial rallied 39 cents to $21.89 in switching ownership of 57 shares, AMG Packaging declined 10 cents to end at $3.55, with 278,333 stocks changing hands, CAC 2000 rose 45 cents to close at $7.50 in trading 3,487 stock units. Caribbean Assurance Brokers advanced 33 cents in ending at $2.70 with 88,049 units crossing the market, Dolphin Cove shed 55 cents in closing at $21.80, with 23,389 stocks clearing the market, Elite Diagnostic rallied 19 cents to end at $3.79 with an exchange of 777,460 shares. Express Catering fell 35 cents to $6.15 after exchanging 1,046,233 stock units, Fosrich popped 90 cents in closing at $23.80 in an exchange of 62,225 units, Honey Bun increased 25 cents to close at $9.95 with the swapping of 22,944 units. Indies Pharma dropped 30 cents in ending at $2.85 after exchanging 2,666,673 shares, KLE Group climbed 26 cents to end at $2.58 after trading 340 stocks, Knutsford Express advanced 20 cents to close at $7.90, with 17,876 stock units changing hands.
Limners and Bards increased 14 cents to $3.29 after just 950 stock units crossed the market, Lumber Depot lost 12 cents in ending at $3.55 after trading 1,278,664 shares, Main Event gained 14 cents in closing at $8.14 after 12,106 units crossed the exchange. Paramount Trading rose 10 cents in closing at $1.76 in an exchange of 62,462 stocks, SSL Venture popped 17 cents to end at $1.84 while exchanging 11,262 stocks, Stationery and Office Supplies dropped 62 cents to $7.27 while trading 10,977 shares and tTech climbed 13 cents to close at $4.13 in switching ownership of 204 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
