VM Investments gained 32% to end at $3.24 on Friday
The latest listing on the Main Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, Victoria Mutual Investments, traded after listing on Friday and closed at $3.24 for a gain of 32 percent from its IPO price, after trading as high as $4 while trading 782,853 shares.
Wisynco that listed on Thursday, closed at $11.99 on heavy trading to gain 52 percent since the public issue in December.
The Main Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange concluded trading on Friday with 26 securities changing hands, 11 advanced, 4 declined and 11 traded firm with 10,210,190 units valued at $125,309,363.
Trading ended with the All Jamaican Composite Index surging 4,310.37 points to 316,516.11 for a gain of 50.6 percent for the year and the JSE Index jumping by 3,927.24 points to 288,381.97, ending 2017 with a rise of 50 percent versus 22 securities trading on Thursday.
In main market activity, Barita Investments concluded trading with a loss of 45 cents at $7.50, with 11,075 units, Berger Paints finished 4 cents higher at $16.55, with 12,000 shares, Cable & Wireless settled 15 cents higher at $1.25, with 918,469 shares, Caribbean Cement ended trading at $32.50, with 12,000 stock units, Carreras traded at $11.40, with 82,669 units. Grace Kennedy closed 75 cents higher at $43.75, with 118,915 shares, Jamaica Broilers ended with a loss of 30 cents at $17.70, with 13,300 stock units, JMMB Group ended trading $2 higher at $25, with 1,255,076 stock units, Jamaica Producers concluded trading at $16.70, with 104,033 units, Jamaica Stock Exchange finished 5 cents higher at $7.05, with 49,297 shares. Kingston Wharves ended trading at $32.50, with 9,204 stock units, Mayberry Investments traded at $6, with 89,353 units, NCB Financial finished trading $1.50 higher at $100, with 38,507 shares, PanJam Investment ended with a loss of 5 cents at $44.75, with 15,429 stock units. 
Radio Jamaica settled at $1.05, with 185,174 shares, Sagicor Group ended trading 1 cent higher at $38, with 136,913 stock units, Sagicor Real Estate Fund traded at $15, with 8,817 units, Salada Foods finished trading with a loss of 25 cents at $11.25, with 32,049 shares. Scotia Group closed $3.75 higher at $53.85, with 76,440 shares, Sterling Investments gained $1 and closed at $13, with 7,470 shares, Supreme Ventures ended trading at $11.50, with 515,544 stock units and Wisynco Group traded $1.90 higher to end at a closing record high of $11.99, with 5,090,376 units. In the main market preference segment, Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.5% traded 550,000 units at $1.90, JMMB Group 7.5% traded 94,000 units at $1.15 and Proven Investments 8.25% ended with 1,227 units trading at $5.90.
Prices of securities trading for the day are those at which the last trade took place. For more details of market activities, see “JSE Main Market gains 50% for 2017.”
Caribbean Cement ended trading 99 cents higher at $32.50, with 111,545 stock units, Carreras traded at $11.40, with 65,754 units, Grace Kennedy closed at $43, with 139,950 shares. Jamaica Broilers ended at $18, with 20,988 stock units, Jamaica Producers concluded trading at $16.70, with 19,010 units, Jamaica Stock Exchange finished at $7, with 64,203 shares, JMMB Group settled with a loss of 1 cent at $23, with 404,504 shares. JMMB Group ended trading with a loss of $1 at $23, with 404,504 stock units, Kingston Wharves finished trading at $32.50, with 215 shares, Mayberry Investments closed at $6, with 250,000 shares, NCB Financial ended with a loss of 50 cents at $98.50, with 122,721 stock units. PanJam Investment finished at $44.80, with 12,141 shares, Pulse Investments ended trading at $1.80, with 16,992 stock units, 
Sagicor Group finished trading $2.24 higher at $37.99, with 43,400 shares, Sagicor Real Estate Fund closed at $15, with 2,000 shares. Salada Foods ended $1 higher at a 52 weeks’ high of $11.50, with 102,000 stock units, Scotia Group concluded trading with a loss of $1.90 at $50.10, with 43,810 units and Supreme Ventures ended trading 80 cents higher at $11.50, with 15,000 stock units. In the main market preference segment, JMMB Group 7.5% traded 133,300 units at $1.15 and Proven Investments 8.25% ended with 48,773 units trading with a rise of 60 cents at $5.90.
Trading on Jamaica Stock Exchange fell sharply on Wednesday to 1,316,067 units with a value of $22,258,246, down from 18,689,826 units valued at $192,233,164 traded on the Main Market of the on Friday. 
In the main market activity, Berger Paints finished with a loss of $1.60 at $16.50, with 5,555 shares trading, Cable & Wireless settled 5 cents higher at $1.05, with 137,812 shares, Caribbean Cement ended trading with a loss of 49 cents at $31.51, with 41,500 stock units, Carreras traded with a loss of 5 cents at $11.40, with 86,297 units, Ciboney finished trading at 41 cents, with 385,200 shares changing hands. Grace Kennedy closed at $43, with 14,659 shares, Jamaica Broilers ended 1 cent higher at $18, with 16,098 stock units, Jamaica Producers concluded trading with a rise of $1.60 to $16.70, with 3,408 units, Jamaica Stock Exchange finished with a loss of 5 cents at $7, exchanging 5,432 shares. JMMB Group settled 50 cents higher at $24, with 26,090 shares, Kingston Properties traded with a loss of 31 cents at $7.70, with 2,090 units, Kingston Wharves finished trading at $32.50, with 3,641 shares. Mayberry Investments closed 63 cents higher at $6, with 5,000 shares, NCB Financial lost $1 to close at $99, with 58,149 stock units trading. PanJam Investment finished with a loss of 20 cents at $44.80, with 58,860 shares, 
Pulse Investments ended trading 2 cents higher at $1.80, with 500 stock units, Radio Jamaica traded 2 cents higher at $1.05, with 94,271 units, Sagicor Group finished trading 24 cents higher at $35.75, with 129,580 shares. Sagicor Real Estate Fund closed at $15, with 120,420 shares, Salada Foods ended 55 cents higher at $10.50, with 28,000 stock units. Scotia Group concluded trading with a loss of $1.99 at $52, with 22,737 units, Seprod finished at $30, with 30,840 shares and Supreme Ventures ended trading 30 cents higher at $10.70, with 36,200 stock units. In the main market preference segment, Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.25% traded 2001 units at $2.49, Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.5% traded 1,000 units at $1.90 after gaining 10 cents and Proven Investments 8.25% ended with 727 units trading with a loss of 20 cents at $5.30.
Wednesday’s trading report on the Jamaica Stock Exchange activity shows the main market indices declining from Friday’s close, but the closing indices are higher than the official report of the Stock exchange on Friday. 
The main market list is likely to see about 4 new entrants for 2018, with Cable & Wireless, Barita Investments, Palace Amusement and Wisynco depending on when it list, joining the top stocks. Radio Jamaica sits just below the TOP 10 and could well squeeze into the 10 by the start of 2018. Profit results for the fourth quarter, are likely to impact prices of most stocks as the information will provide important fuel for price movements.
At the close of Friday, the average PE ratio for Junior Market Top stocks ended at 7.9 and 8.2 for the main market TOP 10. The average PE for the overall main market is 14.2 and 13.4 for the Junior Market, based on 2017 estimated earnings.
FosRich and GWest Corporation, the recent IPOs, started trading on the Junior Market last week with strong gains so far, they should be watched in the few trading days left for the year, to glean further directions as both are now richly priced. Others to be watched are, General Accident, Cable & Wireless , NCB Financial, Berger Paints, JMMB Group, Main Event, Lasco Financial, Paramount Trading and Stationery and Office. Wisynco could start trading this week and is expected to create some excitement with the issue more about twice oversubscribed.
In trading on the Main Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday, the All Jamaican Composite Index jumped sharply by 4,523.22 points to 309,489.06 and the JSE Index surged 4,121.16 points to close at 281,979.52. 
The average volume and value for the month to date amounts to 765,616 units valued at $10,279,783 and previously, 758,238 units valued at $10,351,426. In contrast, November closed with average of 349,084 units at an average of $5,801,440 for each security traded.
Shares of Jamaica Stock Exchange dominated trading and accounted for 80 percent of the 18,689,826 units valued at $192,233,164 traded on the Main Market of the on Friday. 
PanJam Investment finished $2 higher at $45, with 11,000 shares, Portland JSX settled 50 cents higher at $10, with 200 shares, Pulse Investments ended trading at $1.78, with 29,000 stock units, Sagicor Group finished trading with a loss of 49 cents at $35.51, with 394,829 shares. Sagicor Real Estate Fund closed at $15, with 18,000 shares, Salada Foods ended at $9.95, with 500 stock units, Scotia Group concluded trading 5 cents higher at $53.99, with 305,536 units, Seprod finished at $30, with 298,745 shares and Supreme Ventures ended trading with a loss of 30 cents at $10.40, with 367,523 stock units changing hands.
Trading in the US dollar market, ended with Proven Investments US ordinary share having 50,000 units changing hands at 22 US cents and Sterling Investments exchanging just 100 units and rising moderately in price to 0.1221 US cents from 0.12 cents. The total value of trading amounted to US$11,012 with the US dollar Equities Index closing 2.24 points down, at 169.22.
Kingston Wharves finished trading 25 cents higher at $32.25, with 3,640 shares, Mayberry Investments closed 20 cents higher at $5.60, with 100,000 shares. NCB Financial Group ended with a loss of $1.49 at $98.51, with 224,896 stock units, PanJam Investment settled at $43, with 51,064 shares, Pulse Investments traded at $1.78, with 500 units. Radio Jamaica finished trading at $1.03, with 20,000 shares, Sagicor Group closed at $36, with 2,285 shares, Sagicor Real Estate Fund ended 50 cents higher at $15, with 7,820 stock units, Salada Foods Jamaica concluded trading at $9.95, with 4,000 units. Scotia Group finished $3.74 higher at $53.94, with 168,006 shares and Supreme Ventures traded 20 cents higher at $10.70, with 168,705,372 units.
JSE board needs a huge shake up
Ian McNaughton, Chairman of the Jamaica Stock Exchange.
The Jamaica Stock Exchange needs to heal itself and fast, since no one else seems able to do so yet. There are some startling truths about Jamaica but not many persons want to talk about them.
The fact that we are seeing a repeat of this problem is a clear indication that there needs to be changes at the board level of the JSE.
One such truth, stock exchange board is not running the exchange in the interest of the wider investing public. The other is that the Financial Securities Commission is almost a waste of taxpayers’ money whether by government subvention or fees paid directly or indirectly by investors. If that were not the case how can the country explain that Berger Paints’ directors could make false statements about the acceptance and value of Berger Paints shares in response to Ansa Coatings offer to buy out minority shareholder and no one in authority called them to book and got them to support their claims with evidence.
In July this year, Express Catering shares were not being traded as demand exceeded supply by a wide margin and pushing the equilibrium price well ahead of prices that the circuit breaker rule at the JSE permitted. The stock did not trade for a number of days after listing, left to the rules as was being practiced, the stock would have taken much longer to trade than it finally did after management intervened. The same thing is now happening to FosRich shares that have not traded after two days of listing, with demand exceeding supply well above the permitted price of the JSE. When Wisynco and VM Investments list, one can expect the same situation to occur, unless the rule is modified.
Having hand the problem several months ago it seems implausible that the JSE has not moved speedily to correct what is clearly a problem when IPOs start trading. Why has the stock Exchange board not moved to correct what is clearly a problem for new listings. Why has the FSC not intervened to ensure it get sorted out, before new listings come to market?
Lest face some facts, time is money. The FosRich issue closed on December 4, as such, investors who would like to sell have to wait for nearly a month to be able to get their money out based on the Jamaica Stock Exchange price restriction. In the cases of Wisynco and VM Investments the situation will be vastly worse with both having protracted period to announce the allocation of shares much yet listing.
The Junior Market of the exchange has demonstrated the power of share ownership, to radically transform the economy and the wider society. Alas enough effort is not being given to it, the mechanical application of the circuit breaker rule is one such factor that is negatively affecting the market.
Finally, the Berger Paints takeover offer is once more pointing to the fact that a rule meant to protect minorities is not doing so at all, if it did how can one explain the fact that just over 6 million shares were surrendered as a result of the Ansa’s bid with the shares trading up to $18 since compared to an offer on $10.88. Clearly the big investors did not sell so it must be much smaller investors who are not adequately informed.