The Main and Junior Markets did not maintain the sharp bounce of the previous week, but most ICTOP10 Junior Market stocks ended with gains. In contrast, the Main Market ended with mostly modest losses, with 138 Student Living rising 5 percent to $5.30 and JMMB Group declining by 5 percent to $31.49, all other changes in the Main Market were two percent or less.

Dr Karlene McDonnough – Chairman of Image Consultants Ltd. The stock came in for increased demand during the week ahead of the release of full-year results.

The Junior Market had one change in its TOP10 list as Iron Rock Insurance and Image Plus climbed 13 percent to $2.27 and $2.03, respectively, while Main Event and Honey Bun rose 5 percent to $12.26 and $6.75, respectively, with the only sizable decline being a 9 percent fall for Tropical Battery to $1.90.
Image Plus never benefitted from any serious IPO bounce seems to be finally finding buying interest and closed the past week with 159,904 shares on the bid at $2.02, 160,746 at $2 and just over 800,000 between $1.90 and $1.95, with 25,987 stocks on offer at $2.03, 81,709 at $2.05 with one big offer of 1.72 million units at S2.50 with smaller offers before the this. There has been healthy trading in the stock recently, with trading of 824,526 units on Thursday. Trading on Wednesday saw 1,153,255 shares changing hands in the stock, with 910,000 units on Tuesday and 1.75 million shares on Monday, which seems to have cleared out a great deal of overhang in the market.
Update on interest rate developments. A number of developments taking place in the economy are worth watching. Following last week’s $35 billion Bank of Jamaica CD auction that saw the average rate coming in at 8.49 percent, this week’s auction saw an offer of $34 billion, with the average rate remaining the same as the previous week with fewer funds chasing the offered amount. Another positive development is the average inflation rate running at 45 percent less than the same time last year and averaging 2.4 percent per annum since November last year. Foreign exchange inflows have been strong, with the NIR growing at $66 million in February and 220 million in March, putting it at a record end of month level as initial data suggest that tourism arrivals and foreign exchange generated by that industry exceed the similar period in 2019, the last year without the impact of covid-19 negatively affecting the sector. On top of those positive developments, corporate profits are expected to enjoy a good bounce for the majority of companies for the first quarter.
The Junior Market has a long term pattern, with the market starting to rise around a month before quarterly results are due and declining shortly after results are released. This is a pattern worth noting that can be built into investment decisions to improve returns.

Consolidated Bakeries Miss Birdie Easter bun. The stock is back in the ICTOP10

Dropping from the TOP10 Junior Market list this past week was Honey Bun, but investors should expect a big jump in revenues and profits for the first quarter, with the Easter coming at the beginning of April versus the 17^th of April last year, as well as an improvement of gross profit margin that slipped up last year.
Returning to the TOP10 is Consolidated Bakeries in the number 3 spot. The company is projected to report a solid first quarter profit, with the Easter holidays coming at the start of April compared with April 17 last year and ensuring that mostly all Easter bun sales will be reported in the March quarter unlike 2022. The company reported a profit in 2022 a big improvement over a loss in the previous three years. ICInsider.com projects earnings of 40 cents for 2023 and 75 cents for 2024 with the company benefitting from a full recovery of the local economy and increase efficiency and reduction in borrowings. 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 13.5, while the Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 5.7 compared with the market at 11.1. The differences are important indicators of the likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks. The Junior Market is projected to rise by 256 percent and the Main Market TOP10, an average of 271 percent, to May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
The Junior Market has 10 stocks representing 21 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 29, averaging 19, well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 15, suggesting this may be a logical value for junior market stocks.
The 16 stocks with the highest value in the Main Market stocks are priced at a PE of 15 to 115, with an average of 30 and 19 excluding the highest PE stocks and 19 for the top half excluding the stocks with the highest valuation.
The above average shows the extent of potential gains for the TOP 10 stocks.
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 will likely 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.

Persons who compiled this report may have an interest in securities commented on in this report.