Lumber Depot commanded the lion’s share of Junior Market trading on Monday after the company reported a 40 percent jump in earnings to reach $29.9 million for the first quarter to July, with revenues rising 11 percent over the comparable period last year.
Lumber Depot dominated trading with
The company earned 5 cents per share for the quarter or about 20 cents for the full year.
Trading closed on Monday, with the market rising despite more stocks falling than advancing after investors traded 499 percent more shares than on Friday with the total swollen by Lumber Depot’s big trade. Trading ended with 30 securities changing hands compared to 33 on Friday and concluded with the prices of eight stocks rising, the prices of 19 companies declining and three with prices remaining unchanged.
At the close, the Junior Market Index inched higher by 7.12 points to 2,521.94. The average PE Ratio of the market ended at 10.6 based on IC Insider.com’s forecast of 2020-21 earnings.
The market closed with an exchange of 12,259,583 shares for $15,273,356 compared to 2,048,087 units at $5,393,700 on Friday.
Lumber Depot led trading with 90.7 percent of the total volume of 11.12 million shares followed by Indies Pharma with 206,274 units for 1.7 percent of the day’s trade and Mailpac Group with 181,248 units for 1.5 percent market share.
Trading ended with an average of 408,653 units at $509,112 in contrast to an average of 62,063 shares at $163,445 on Friday. For the month to date, there was an average trade of 106,7,80 units at $244,156, in comparison to 75,003 units at $216,266 on Friday. Trading in August resulted in an average of 104,426 units at $321,996.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows three stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and four with lower offers.
At the close of the market, Access Financial gained $4.28 to end at $25.79 with 254 shares changing hands, AMG Packaging lost 16 cents to finish at $1.60 with 2,515 units exchanged, Caribbean Assurance Brokers fell 14 cents to $1.91 with 2,505 shares passing through the market. Caribbean Flavors shed 84 cents to settle at $17.60 with 3,640 units traded, Caribbean Producers closed 4 cents lower at $2.32 in an exchange of 80,959 stocks, Derrimon Trading dropped 30 cents to end at $2.55 with investors switching ownership of 10,000 shares. Dolphin Cove jumped 90 cents to finish at $6.90 with 193 shares changing hands, Everything Fresh slipped 6 cents and exchanged 29,124 units to settle at 65 cents, Express Catering rose 2 cents to close at $3.95 with investors transferring 106,049 stocks. Fontana lost 1 cent to end at $4.73 with 62,635 stocks passing through the market, Fosrich declined 5 cents to settle at $3.60 in an exchange of 16,943 stocks, General Accident dropped 8 cents to finish at $6 with 33,404 stocks units changing hands. 
GWest Corporation rose 2 cents to end at 98 cents with 24,000 stocks traded, Honey Bun shed 29 cents to close at $4.71 with investors transferring 5,000 units, Indies Pharma dropped 23 cents to settle at $2.62 in an exchange of 206,274 units. Lasco Distributors slipped 8 cents to close at $3.05 with 7,092 units changing hands, Lasco Financial declined by 2 cents to finish at $2.12 with 70,935 stocks traded, Lasco Manufacturing gained 6 cents to end at $3.79 with 32,978 shares passing through the market. Limners and Bards dropped 32 cents to close at $2.48 with investors switching ownership of 61,016 units, Lumber Depot exchanged 11,123,785 shares and advanced 5 cents to settle at $1.10, Mailpac Group slipped 1 cent to $2 with 181,248 stock units traded. Main Event fell 11 cents to end at $3.39 with 2,418 stocks switching hands, Medical Disposables finished 1 cent higher at $4.71 with an exchange of 1,123 shares, Paramount Trading lost 5 cents to settle at $1.50 with investors switching ownership of 146,900 stock units. SSL Venture fell 1 cent to close at 70 cents in an exchange of 35,144 shares, Stationery and Office Supplies dropped 39 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ low of $5.20 with a mere 11 stock units trading and tTech jumped 75 cents in finishing at $5.75 with 281 units crossing the exchange.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Retail loan grew 5 percent year over year, driven by strong mortgage growth of 16 percent. Total revenues, excluding expected credit losses for the nine months, ended July at $32.1 billion, a reduction of $1.7 billion or 5.1 percent, compared to 2019. For the July 2020 quarter, gross revenues fell from $12.4 billion to $11 billion, with non-interest income contributing $1.1 billion to the decline. Administrative and other expenses were essentially flat at $5.8 billion year over year, a $2 billion increase in provision for expected loan loss helped push profit down in the quarter, to $1.55 billion from $4.2 billion in 2019. Notably, while loans amounting to $221 billion at the end of July grew 12 percent year over year, loans declined modestly from $223 billion at the end of April, the result of the increased credit loss provisioning.
The targeted average PE ratio of the market is 20 based on the profits of companies reporting full year’s results, from now to the second quarter in 2021. Both the Junior and Main markets are currently trading well below this level, an indication of the potential gains ahead. The JSE Main Market ended the week, with an overall PE of 15.1 and the Junior Market 10.9, based on IC Insider.com’s projected 2020-21 earnings. The average PE ratio of the Junior Market has been slowly rising, with better profit opportunities than the Main Market and narrowing the gap. The PE ratio for the Junior Market Top 10 stocks average a mere 6 at just 55 percent to the average of the overall Junior Market. The Main Market TOP 10 stocks trade at a PE of 8.2 or 54 percent of the PE of the overall market.
The average projected gain for the Junior Market IC TOP 10 stocks is 279 percent, and 153 percent for the JSE Main Market, based on 2020-21 earnings, an indication of potentially, greater gains in the Junior Market than in the Main Market.
Trading concluded with 33 securities changing hands, up from 31 on Thursday and ended, with the prices of 13 stocks rising, the prices of 14 declining and six with prices remaining unchanged.
At the close of the market, Access Financial dropped $4.49 to end at $21.51 in an exchange of just 11 shares, AMG Packaging dropped 22 cents to finish at $1.76 with a mere ten units trading, Blue Power fell 12 cents to settle at $3.30 with 1,500 stock units passing through the market. Cargo Handlers lost 30 cents to close at $7, trading 10,000 shares, Caribbean Assurance Brokers gained 14 cents to end at $2.05 with 116,159 units changing hands, Caribbean Cream shed 40 cents to finish at $4 with investors switching ownership of 36,150 shares. Caribbean Flavours fell 3 cents to settle at $18.44 with 3,309 stocks passing through the market, Derrimon Trading advanced 34 cents to end at $2.85 in an exchange of 18,707 shares, Elite Diagnostic closed 33 cents higher at $3.39 with investors transferring 10,050 units. Express Catering slipped 2 cents to $3.93 with 19,201 stock units traded, Fontana lost 3 cents to finish at $4.74 with 138,448 shares passing through the market, General Accident gained 8 cents to end at $6.08 in an exchange of 868 stock units. iCreate rose 4 cents to settle at 70 cents with 3,306 stocks changing hands, Indies Pharma gained 7 cents to close at $2.85 with135,634 stock units traded, Jamaican Teas gained 14 cents to finish at $4.69 with investors switching ownership of 48,000 stock units. 
Jetcon Corporation lost 7 cents to end at 85 cents in an exchange of 2,550 shares, KLE Group declined by 6 cents to finish at $1.36 with 1,000 shares changing hands, Lasco Distributors traded 539,293 stock units and advanced 10 cents to settle at $3.13. Lasco Financial rose 2 cents to close at $2.14 with investors transferring 3,750 units, Lasco Manufacturing fell 6 cents to end at $3.73 in an exchange of 1,136 shares, Limners and Bards slid 2 cents to $2.80 with 75,975 shares passing through the market. Lumber Depot finished 1 cent higher at $1.05 with 158,533 shares changing hands, Mailpac Group traded 639,248 stock units and gained 1 cent to settle at $2.01, Main Event rose 5 cents to end at $3.50 in an exchange of 501 shares. Medical Disposables advanced 8 cents to end at $4.70 with investors switching ownership of 500 stocks and Paramount Trading fell 5 cents to settle at $1.55 with 14,333 units crossing the exchange.
Trading ended with 30 securities changing hands compared to 36 on Tuesday and closed with the prices of 13 stocks rising, 10 declining and seven remaining unchanged. At the close, the Junior Market Index dropped 17.95 points to settle at 2,486.06. The average PE Ratio of the market ended at 10.6 based on IC Insider.com forecast of 2020-21 earnings.
At the close of the market, AMG Packaging gained 11 cents to end at $2.11 in trading 15,758 shares, Blue Power rose 12 cents in closing at $3.41, with 2,000 units changing hands, Cargo Handlers picked up 2 cents to finish at $7.30 in trading 468 stock units. Caribbean Assurance Brokers ended at $1.91 after gaining 1 cent with an exchange of 39,656 shares, Caribbean Cream rose 34 cents to settle at $4.40, after 21,897 stock units passed through the market, Caribbean Flavours lost 19 cents ending at $18.30, with 50,609 shares changing hands. Caribbean Producers lost 4 cents trading 21,578 stock units to settle at $2.32, Dolphin Cove shed 50 cents to finish at $6, with an exchange of 7,924 stock units, Elite Diagnostic gained 15 cents in transferring 6,000 stock units and closed at $3.20. Everything Fresh ended at 68 cents, with gains of 3 cents after exchanging 6,300 units, Express Catering rose 40 cents to $4.35 in trading 468,000 shares, Fontana picked up 1 cent to close at $4.76, with 66,012 units crossing the exchange. 
General Accident lost 5 cents to end at $6.37, in trading 6,482 stock units, Honey Bun lost 25 cents to close at $4.71 after 1,728 units crossed the market, Indies Pharma shed 27 cents in closing at $2.51, with 186,538 shares crossing the exchange. Lasco Financial lost 7 cents to end at $2.08 after exchanging 35,513 shares, Lasco Manufacturing shed 4 cents to close at $3.75, after trading 22,855 shares, Limners and Bards gained 9 cents to end at $2.85, exchanging 9,935 stock units. MailPac Group gained 4 cents to end at $2.09, with 198,740 shares changing hands, Main Event rose 5 cents to end at $3.45, in an exchange of 1,098 units, Medical Disposables shed 30 cents to finish at $4.50 trading 64,000 stock units. Paramount Trading gained 2 cents to end at $1.54, with 1,700 units changing hands and tTech fell 76 cents to $4.01, with 123 shares clearing the market.
Stationery and Office Supplies and Jetcon Corporation dropped out of the Junior Market list, the former earning, was revised down for 2020, with the loss incurred in the June quarter while Jetcon price inched up, to be squeezed out of the top stocks.
The targeted average PE ratio of the market is 20 based on the profit of companies reporting full year’s results, from now to the second quarter in 2021. Both the Junior and Main markets are currently trading well below this level, an indication of the potential gains ahead. The JSE Main Market ended the week, with an overall PE of 15 and the Junior Market 10.8, based on IC Insider.com’s projected 2020-21 earnings. The average PE ratio of the Junior Market has been slowly rising, with better profit opportunities than the Main Market and narrowing the gap. 
The PE ratio for the Junior Market Top 10 stocks average a mere 6 at just 56 percent to the average of the overall Junior Market. The Main Market TOP 10 stocks trade at a PE of 8.1 or 54 percent of the PE of the overall market.
the best returns up to March 2021 and ranked in order of potential gains, based on likely gain for each company, taking into account the earnings and PE ratios for the current fiscal year. Expected values will change as stock prices fluctuate and will result in movements of the selection in and out of the lists for most weeks. Revisions to earnings per share are ongoing, based on receipt of new information.
Trading concluded with 36 securities changing hands compared to 32 on Monday and ended with the prices of 17 stocks rising, the prices of 12 stocks declining and seven stocks with prices remaining unchanged.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows three stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
Iron Rock Insurance declined 5 cents to settle at $2.85 with investors switching ownership of 13,319 stock units, Jamaican Teas lost 9 cents to close at $4.60 with 118,300 stock units changing hands, Jetcon Corporation rose 9 cents and exchanged 408,415 shares to end at 93 cents. Knutsford Express gained 10 cents to end at $6.90 with investors transferring 5,350 shares, Lasco Distributors rose 1 cent to settle at $3.01 with an exchange of 47,841 units, Limners and Bards closed 1 cent higher at $2.76 with 51,824 stock units changing hands. Lumber Depot fell 5 cents to end at $1 with 157,348 shares passing through the market, Mailpac Group added 1 cent and exchanged 143,925 stocks to settle at $2.05, Main Event declined 30 cents to close at $3.40 with 26,047 stock units traded and tTech dropped 73 cents to end at $4.77 with 16,227 units crossing the exchange.
Trading ended with 32 securities changing hands compared to 28 on Friday and ended with the prices of 14 stocks rising, the prices of 12 stocks falling and six remaining unchanged.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows four stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and five with lower offers.
Honey Bun closed at $4.70 after losing 40 cents in transferring 7,000 stock units, iCreate gained 6 cents clearing the market with 16,200 shares to end at 74 cents, Indies Pharma closed 16 cents higher at $2.79 after trading 3,600 units. Jetcon Corporation gained 1 cent to end at 84 cents, with 43,851 shares passing through the market, Knutsford Express shed 10 cents in ending at $6.80 and trading 2,750 units, Lasco Distributors lost 12 cents to settle at $3, with an exchange of 235,733 shares. Lasco Financial gained 9 cents to end at $2.15, after transferring 9,825 stock units, Limners and Bards gained 14 cents and ended at $2.75, in trading 15,608 units, MailPac Group shed 10 cents to close at $2.04, with an exchange of 118,642 shares. Medical Disposables lost 19 ents, with 16,028 stock units changing hands to end at $4.80 and Stationery and Office Supplies lost 1 cent to close at $5.60, with investors swapping 47,847 stock units.
Trading ended with 31 securities changing hands compared to 35 on Wednesday and ended with the prices of 15 stocks rising, the prices of 10 declining and six, with remaining unchanged.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows five stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and seven with lower offers.
Indies Pharma gained 19 cents and ended at $2.84, with and 14,008 stock units clearing the market, ISP Finance climbed $2 in closing at $15 in transferring 1,000 units, Jamaican Teas rose 63 cents to close at $4.69, after an exchange of 3,000 units. Jetcon Corporation slipped 4 cents to 80 cents trading 9,510 stock units, Knutsford Express finished 10 cents higher at $6.90, with a transfer of 3,649 shares, Lasco Distributors carved out a gain of 10 cents to close at $3.10, with 51,906 shares crossing the market. Lasco Financial gained 2 cents to settle at $2.15, in trading 51,250 shares, Lasco Manufacturing lost 18 cents to end $3.61 after exchanging 6,000 units, Limners and Bards shed 12 cents in closing at $2.61, while trading 374,097 shares. Lumber Depot gained 6 cents to end at $1.05, with a transfer of 4,511 units, MailPac Group closed at $2, with a gain of 1 cent in trading 3,522,281 shares, Main Event rose 30 cents to end at $3.70, in exchanging 100 units and tTech shed 60 cents to settle at $5.50 with investors swapping 40,849 shares.
Trading ended with 29 securities changing hands compared to 33 on Monday and ended with the prices of eight stocks rising, the prices of 12 declining and nine with prices remaining unchanged.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows two stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
Express Catering climbed 48 cents to settle at $3.94 with 115,504 stocks changing hands, Fosrich gained 20 cents and traded 100,750 stock units to close at $4, General Accident lost 3 cents to settle at $6.07 with investors transferring ownership of 15,589 stocks. Honey Bun gained 20 cents to finish at $5.10 with an exchange of 42,823 stock units, ISP Finance shed $2.59 to close at $12 with 841 shares traded, Jamaican Teas declined 10 cents to end at $4.60 with 34,457 units changing hands. Lasco Distributors fell 1 cent to $3 with investors switching ownership of 315,000 stocks, Lasco Financial slipped 1 cent to close at $2.14 with an exchange of 20,600 shares, Limners and Bards rose 1 cent to settle at $2.70 with 135,880 stocks changing hands. Lumber Depot lost 1 cent to finish at 99 cents, with 184,359 units traded and tTech advanced by 70 cents to end at $6.10 with 12,467 units crossing the exchange.
At the close of the market, Access Financial advanced $6.02 to $26.10 in an exchange of 10,056 shares, AMG Packaging gained 3 cents to end at $1.73 with 28,100 stock units changing hands, Blue Power closed at $3.20, after losing 5 cents and exchanging 15,500 shares. Caribbean Assurance Brokers lost 1 cent to finish at $2.08, in trading 6,818 units, Caribbean Cream ended at $3.90, with a loss of 7 cents in exchanging 9,780 units. Caribbean Flavours shed 50 cents, in falling to $17.50 with investors swapping 26,783 stock units, Caribbean Producers fell 1 cent to $2.44 and clearing the market with 22,090 stocks, Consolidated Bakeries slipped 1 cent to settle at $1.35 in exchanging 35,000 shares. Elite Diagnostic gained 1 cent to close at $3.01 while exchanging 24,431 units, Express Catering dropped 48 cents to settle at $3.46 in trading 199,371 shares, Fontana declined 20 cents to $4.79 after exchanging 74,757 stock units. General Accident shed 50 cents to close at $6.10 with 210,110 shares crossing the market, iCreate gained 5 cents to close at 70 cents after trading 210,000 shares, Iron Rock Insurance rose 30 cents in closing at $3.15, with investors switching ownership of 2,000 units. Jamaican Teas carved out a gain of 20 cents in ending at $4.70, with 11,034 stock units changing hands, Jetcon Corporation ended 5 cents higher at 80 cents, in transferring 3,500 stock units, Knutsford Express closed at $6.90, with gains of 5 cents trading 19,911 stock units. Lasco Distributors lost 18 cents to end at $3.01 after exchanging 39,926 shares, Lasco Financial gained 6 cents to end at $2.15 in an exchange of 49,500 stock units, Lasco Manufacturing finished 9 cents higher at $3.60, with 8,900 stock units crossing the market.
Limners and Bards carved out a gain of 13 cents to end at $2.69 while exchanging 4,888 stock units, Lumber Depot lost 5 cents in closing at $1 while trading 17,125 stocks, MailPac Group declined 2 cents to $2, after exchanging 1,258,085 shares. Medical Disposables fell 23 cents to $4.67, with a transfer of 7,653 stock units, Paramount Trading shed 18 cents to settle at $1.52, in an exchange of 10,200 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies dropped 20 cents to settle at $5.60 after trading 46,175 stock units and tTech lost 1 cent to end at $5.40 with investors swapping 3,112 stocks.