The decline of the Trinidad & Tobago market indices continued apace on Wednesday as declining stocks edged out advancing ones leaving the T&T Composite Index with a loss of 8.83 points to close at 1,363.75, the All T&T Index dropped 12.88 points to end at 1,761.39 and the Cross Listed Index slipped 0.64 points to 130.83.
The market closed with three stocks closing at 52 weeks’ low after four stocks recorded gains, seven declined, while four remained unchanged. The total volume of shares passing through the market climbed to 1,141,627 units valued at $5,923,432 compared to 656,107 shares for $10,311,421 on Tuesday.
IC bid-offer Indicator│The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator ended with the bids of three stocks higher than their last selling prices and five with lower offers.
Gainers│ Clico Investments added 50 cents transferring 33,862 shares to end at $22, Guardian Holdings picked up 90 cents to close at $17.90, in trading 12,165 units, JMMB Group added 5 cents to end at $2 exchanging 926,457 shares and Republic Financial Holdings gained $5.72 to close at $141.72, with 15,370 stock units changing hands.
Losers│ Angostura Holdings lost 50 cents and slipped to a 52 weeks’ low of $14.50, in trading a mere five stock units, First Citizens Bank closed at $39, after falling $2.75 and exchanging 3,037 units. First Caribbean International Bank shed 15 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ low of $7.70 with 50 stock units crossing the market, 
Massy Holdings declined by 50 cents to close at $56.50, with 518 stock units changing hands, Scotiabank ended at $57 exchanging 754 units, after losing $1. Trinidad & Tobago NGL shed 24 cents to close at $17.01, with 2,750 stock units crossing the market and West Indian Tobacco lost 24 cents to end at $34.75, trading 139 units.
Firm Trades│ Ansa Merchant Bank traded 51 stock units at $36.30, National Enterprises exchanged 144,795 shares at $5, One Caribbean Media transferred 674 stock units at $7 and Trinidad Cement swapped 1,000 shares at $1.75.
Prices of securities trading are those for the day’s last transaction unless otherwise stated.
Trading ended with 32 securities changing hands, resulting in an exchange of 2,522,568 units valued at $6,848,779 compared to 3,161,624 units valued at $9,205,109 from 33 companies’ securities on Tuesday.
Caribbean Assurance picked up 2 cents and traded 168,230 shares to close at $1.98, Caribbean Producers fell 67 cents in trading of 544,576 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $2.33, Consolidated Bakeries closed 18 cents higher at $1.48 with 118,186 stock units crossing the exchange. Dolphin Cove declined by 10 cents to settle at $6.40 with a transfer of 5,133 shares, Elite Diagnostic swapped 35,610 shares after rising 19 cents to end at $2.90, Everything Fresh closed at a 52 weeks’ low of 60 cents after slipping 2 cents and exchanging 52,075 shares. General Accident lost 10 cents in trading 5,780 shares to close at $4, Honey Bun gained 30 cents to close at $6 with 26,694 stock units changing hands, Indies Pharma lost 30 cents in trading 300 shares to close at 52 weeks’ low of $1.25. Jamaican Teas climbed 26 cents and exchanged 66,135 shares at $3.96, Jetcon Corporation closed 3 cents higher at $1.03 with 20,965 stock units trading, 
Lasco Distributors ended trading of 111,827 units and gained 8 cents to settle at $3. Lasco Financial dropped 35 cents in the exchange of 25,455 units at $2.50, Limners and Bards lost 3 cents in trading 5,000 shares to close at $1.85, Lumber Depot ended trading with 338,706 shares, after rising 11 cents to $1.15. MailPac lost 2 cents in swapping of 76,242 units at $1.37, Main Event climbed 69 cents and exchanged 11,000 shares to close at $4.50, Medical Disposables closed at $6.10 after adding 40 cents in exchanging 3,113 shares. Stationery and Office Supplies ended with a loss of $1 at a 52 weeks’ low of $5.50 with 40,000 stock units changing hand and tTech climbed 20 cents to $3.70 with 2,478 shares crossing the exchange.
Trans Jamaica Highway commenced trading in the US dollar market having been listed at the start of trading and dominated market activity 86 percent of the day’s volume.
The other big move for the day, was the substantial fall of $16 in the shares of NCB Financial to close at $140, the lowest price of in a year.
The Market closed with an average of 1,817,851 units valued $11,653,928 for each security traded, in contrast to 640,893 units valued at an average of $8,466,980 on Monday. The average volume and value for the month to date amount to 775,631 units valued at $6,653,987 for each security changing hands compared to 708,783 units valued at 6,313,433 for each security traded. Trading in February resulted in an average of 624,731 units valued at $3,239,665 for each security.
NCB Financial dropped $16 to a 52 weeks’ low of $140, after trading 2,289,514 units, 138 Student Living lost 30 cents to close at $4.11, with 36,389 shares crossing the exchange, Proven Investments slid to $37.48, after losing $1.02 with 21,006 stock units changing hands. Sagicor Group shed $3 after exchanging 186,808 units and closed at $40, Scotia Group fell by $2.01 to close at a 52 weeks’ low of $37.99, in trading 138,446 shares, Seprod ended at $35, with a loss of $2 in swapping 94,065 units. Stanley Motta closed 30 cents higher with a transfer of 11,000 stock units $5.30, Supreme Investments ended at $14, after a loss of $1 and trading 206,576 shares. Sygnus Credit Investments lost 55 cents to close at $17, in transferring 202,528 stock units, Victoria Mutual Investments slipped to $6.30 after losing 39 cents with 176,895 units changing hands and Wisynco Group closed at $13.49, with gains of 99 cents after exchanging 493,269 shares.
Trading on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange ended on Tuesday with the market Index diving 52.80 points to close at 2,100.86, down 37 percent for the year as 33 securities changed hands, with prices of nine securities rising, 15 falling and nine remaining unchanged.
Caribbean Cream exchanged 20,000 stock units and gained 1 cent to end at $2.11, Caribbean Flavours fell 50 cents in trading of 600 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $10. Caribbean Producers declined 10 cents to settle at $3, with 10,000 shares changing hands, Dolphin Cove traded 14,156 shares and fell 50 cents to close $6.50, Elite Diagnostic dropped 39 cents in trading of 95,816 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $2.71. Fosrich ended market activity in exchanging 63,565 shares to close at $2.50 after falling 45 cents, Fontana shed 20 cents in trading of 385,577 units at $4, General Accident dropped 90 cents to settle at $4.10 after exchanging 181,000 stock units and trading at an intraday 52 weeks’ low of $3.89. Indies Pharma closed 5 cents higher at $1.55, with 28,655 stock units trading, Jamaican Teas lost 30 cents in trading 105,774 shares to close at $3.70, Jetcon Corporation dipped 10 cents with 205,925 units changing hands at $1, Knutsford Express declined 25 cents in trading of 79 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $7. KLE Group shed 40 cents in trading of 957 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $1.20, Lasco Distributors closed 32 cents higher at $2.92, with 25,111 stock units changing hands, 
Lasco Financial closed 29 cents higher at $2.85, with 24,070 stock units trading. Lasco Manufacturing exchanged 39,019 units and gained 64 cents to end at $3.50, Limners and Bards rose 18 cents to end at $1.88 and closed with 137,535 units crossing the exchange, Lumber Depot closed with a loss of 21 cents at 52 weeks’ low of $1.04, swapping of 356,449 shares. MailPac closed trading of 92,679 units and gained 8 cents to end at $1.39. Medical Disposables declined by 50 cents to settle at $5.70, after exchanging 60,381 stock units, Paramount Trading lost 10 cents in trading 34,500 shares to close at 1.90 cents, Stationery and Office Supplies traded 12,974 shares and gained 50 cents to end at $6.50 and tTech declined 20 cents in trading of 1,000,620 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $3.50.
Massy Holdings declined by $1 to close at $57, with 199 stock units changing hands, Point Lisas lost 25 cents in trading 2,500 stock units to finish at $3.45. Republic Financial Holdings dropped $8, after transferring 12,000 units to finish at $136, Trinidad Cement ended at $1.75, after falling 20 cents exchanging 2,464 stock units and West Indian Tobacco lost 1 cent to close at $34.99, with 75,200 stock units crossing the market.
Bids in the market to buy are sparse with twenty bids to buy between $1.02 and a low of 50 cents, while sellers are dominant with 600 on the offer to sell from $1.03 upwards.
The market closed with 45 securities changing hands in the Main and US dollar markets with prices of 17 stocks advancing, 17 declining and 11 securities trading firm. The JSE Main Market activity ended with 41 securities accounting for 26,276,614 units valued at $347,146,174, in contrast to 36,332,153 units valued at $175,354,038 from 42 securities on Friday.
IC bid-offer Indicator│ At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading shows 11 stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and six stocks closing with lower offers. The PE ratio of the market ended at 14.5, while the Main Market ended at 13.3 times 2019 earnings.
Salada Foods shed $1 to $25, with 9,100 units changing hands, Stanley Motta ended 79 cents higher with 57,275 shares changing hands and settled at $5. Sterling Investments gained 28 cents to close at $2.50 swapping 58,805 stock units. Supreme Investments ended at $15, with gains of 50 cents trading 51,500 units, Sygnus Credit Investments shed 45 cents to close at $17.55, in transferring 136,312 shares. Victoria Mutual Investments lost 31 cents with 335,283 shares crossing the exchange and closed at $6.69 and Wisynco Group lost $2.20 in closing at $12.50, after exchanging 576,137 shares.
Market activities resulted in an exchange of 3,024,296 units valued at just $6,277,143 compared to 3,640,594 units valued at $10,061,535 on Friday. The average market PE ratio ended at ten times, 2019 earnings.
Cargo Handlers fell 40 cents trading 842 stock units to close at $5.10, Caribbean Assurance declined 1 cent to end at $1.94 with 188,778 units traded, Caribbean Cream closed with a loss of 65 cents at a 52 weeks’ low of $2.10 in the swapping of 100,000 shares. Caribbean Producers dropped 15 cents to settle at $3.10 as 11,008 units changed hands, Consolidated Bakeries ended 4 cents higher at $1.30 with 54,386 stock units crossing the exchange, Elite Diagnostic dropped 40 cents in trading of 93,115 units at $3.10. Express Catering finished with a loss of 60 cents at $3.20 with an exchange of 66,107 shares, Fontana ended trading with 230,426 units, after rising 20 cents to end at $4.20, Fosrich closed trading of 115,510 units and gained 55 cents to end at $2.95. General Accident closed 13 cents higher at $5, with 3,101 stock units trading, GWest Corporation declined 9 cents in trading of 106,669 units at 70 cents, iCreate closed with a loss of 2 cents at 45 cents after swapping 435,204 shares. Indies Pharma lost 45 cents in trading 117,958 shares to settle at a 52 weeks’ low of $1.50, Jamaican Teas closed with a loss of 15 cents at $4 swapping 37,073 shares, Jetcon Corporation ended market activity exchanging 10,100 shares to close at $1.10 after slipping 2 cents. Knutsford Express fell 25 cents to $7.25 with 1,300 shares traded, Lasco Distributors concluded trading of 9,994 units and gained 20 cents to finish at $2.60, Lasco Financial closed 6 cents higher at $2.56 with 78,306 units traded. 
Lasco Manufacturing rose 4 cents after exchanging 136,184 shares at $2.86, Limners and Bards ended trading with 42,154 shares, after rising 10 cents to close at $1.70, Lumber Depot exchanging 429,151 shares and lost 3 cents to close at $1.25. MailPac fell 9 cents to $1.31 with 478,451 units traded, Main Event declined by 39 cents to settle at $3.81 with 8,332 shares changing hands, Medical Disposables closed trading of 1,889 units and gained 50 cents to end at $6.20. Paramount Trading gained 30 cents and exchanged 4,956 units to end at $2, SSL Venture closed at $1 after falling 10 cents and swapping 10,543 shares and tTech declined by 55 cents to $3.70 with 1,660 stock units crossing the exchange.
At the close, NCB Financial is set to suffer a significant fall, with the stock closing with the offer to sell 133,050 units at $9 compared to the last sale price of $10 or nearly JS$200. There were no bids placed to buy the stock at the close.
JMMB Group closed at $1.90, after falling 10 cents in exchanging 160,383 units, Massy Holdings shed $1 to end at $58, with 2,330 stock units changing hands, National Enterprise lost 25 cents trading 500 stock units to finish at a 52 weeks’ low of $5. National Flour slipped to a 52 weeks’ low of a $1.20, after falling 2 cents and transferring 1,950 units, One Caribbean Media traded 300 stock units at a 52 weeks’ low of $7, with a decline of 15 cents. Prestige Holdings declined by 50 cents to end at $8, transferring 2,941 units. Scotiabank fell by $1.50 to end at $58 trading 11,246 stock units and West Indian Tobacco declined by $1.50 to close at $35, with 29,510 stock units crossing the market.
