JSE to consider a dividend

April 7, 2016 by

JSE buld with blue skyThe Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) has advised that the Board of Directors will meet on April 19, 2016 to consider the payment of an interim dividend.
In December last year, the company made a second dividend payment of 47 cents per share on December 30, to shareholders on record as at December 23 following a payment in July of 53 cents per share which brought the total pay-out to $1 per share for a total $140 million. Last year’s dividends provided a staggering 63.7 percent yield based on the 2014 closing price of $1.57. With the price of the stock in the $20 range in 2016, the yield is bound to drop dramatically to around 10 percent or less. The stock last traded on Wednesday on the Jamaica Stock Exchange at $19.55.
The company reported earnings for 2015 of $1.25 per share or $175 million, up from only $3 million in 2014. JSE had the best quarter in March with revenues of $259 million and profit of $87 million after tax. The 2016 first quarter seems set to better that of the 2015 first quarter with a big $110 million income from trading a block of Desnoes & Geddes shares almost equal to the estimated $120 million hauled in from the block of Scotia Group shares that was transferred from the Canadian parent to a Caribbean based one.

Marlene Street Forrest - General Manager of the JSE

Marlene Street Forrest – General Manager of the JSE

The December 2015 quarter had the next best quarter with revenues of $196 million but with profit before tax of $40 million much lower than in the September quarter as added cost eroded the profits that should flow from the higher revenues.
What should help boost the first quarter results is added business undertaken by the exchange particularly, the registrar services, for handling of the repo business and increased stock market activity in 2016 over the first quarter of 2015. Last year, for the first quarter, regular trading was $4.9 billion while for 2016 its $6.44 billion, for a 31 percent increase. The JSE also engineered increases in fees charged for some of it services.

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Carreras profit up but report wrong

February 22, 2016 by

CarrerasTobaccoFree280x150Carreras recorded moderate growth of 6 percent in the December quarter last year with profit after tax of $851 million from $800 million in the similar period in 2014, but the report issued by the company on the Stock Exchange has the September 2014 quarterly as the comparative December figures.
For the nine months to December, profits rose 16 percent to $2.27 billion from $1.97 billion.
Revenues grew for the nine months by 8 percent to $9.3 billion, up from $8.67 billion, while revenues grew 7 percent for the quarter from $3.3 billion to $3.55 billion.
Apart from the improvement in revenues which helped to improve profits, administrative cost were lower in the quarter, falling to $332 million from $512 million and for the nine months to $1 billion from $1.08 billion while Distribution and marketing cost rose moderately in the nine months to $512 million but the quarterly figure jumped from only $76 million to $245 million in 2015.
Cash funds stood at $3 billion but $1.1 billion is due to be paid for corporation taxes but shareholders’ capital $1.98 billion which is down from $3.1 billion at March 2015.
Earnings per share came in at $4.68 for the nine months and $1.86 for the quarter with full year’s earnings heading for $6.70 per share net asset value turns out at $4.05. The stock last traded at $66 on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday for a PE of 10.
The company will be paying an interim dividend of $1.80 per share to shareholders on March 17 and brings the total dividend in the last twelve months to $8.94.

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NCB hikes dividend as Q4 profit rises

November 13, 2015 by

NCB reports improved Q4 profit but yearly amount is flat

NCB reports improved Q4 profit but yearly amount is flat


National Commercial Bank hiked their dividend payments for 2015 by 11 in announcing the payment of a final dividend of 85 cents per share, to be paid December 11 with the record date of November 27. NCB paid three interim dividends of 45 cents each, during 2015, the latest brings the total to $2.20 and is up from $1.98 in 2014. The final payment for 2014 was 96 cents with dividend payments amounting to 35 cents per share in August and May and 32 cents per share on February.
The dividends for 2015, represent a yield of 12 percent on the price of the stock at the start of the year of $18.50.
NCB reported profit of $12.3 billion for the year ending September slightly lower than the banking group’s revised 2014 profit of $12.33 billion which is revised upward from $11.6 billion.
For the final quarter profit grew 12 percent to end at $3.75 billion for earnings per share of $1.52 from $3.36 billion in 2014. For the full year earnings per share amounts to $5. Pretax profit for the quarter is up 17 percent to $4.8 billion.
The result for 2014 was revised upward from for earnings per share of $4.73 to $5.01. Earnings should move to the region of $6 per share in 2016.
The 2014 results have in $650 million relating to gains on acquisition of a subsidiary and sale of associated company which makes the 2015 performance much better than it appears. Credit losses fell from $2.3 billion in 2014 to $1.79 billion in 2015 and for the quarter $387 million versus $987 million in 2014.
NCB made decent progress in growing income and keeping cost under control. Loans grew by 5 percent year over year to reach $165 billion, growing this asset will allow for continued growth profitability. The group also enjoyed growth in investment securities and pledged assets which moved from $265 billion to $$276 billion. Customers’ deposits and repurchase agreements that helps to fund asset growth, moved from $337 billion to $328 billion.
NCB shares are listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange and last traded at $34.50.

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Big pay day for JSE shareholders

June 9, 2015 by

JSEDailyTrading280X150The Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) will pay out $74.33 million in the form of a dividend in July. The company listed 140.250 million ordinary shares on the exchange in 2013 is making its first dividend payment since listing.
JSE board of directors met on Monday and declared the payment of a dividend of fifty-three cents (53 cents) per share unit, payable on July 10 to shareholders on record as at June 26, 2015. The stock will trade ex dividend on June 24, 2015.
The share closed 2014 at $1.57 and gained 237.58 since the start of 2015, helped considerably by a jump in profit in the first quarter from a loss of $2 million to $87 million. A pick up in stock market activities also helped in driving demand for the stock as investors saw higher income and profit flowing in future quarters. The JSE reported a very small profit of $3 million for the year ended December last year. The dividend enjoys a yield of 33.75 percent based on the price at the end of last year and 10.5 percent based on the price last Friday and 9.2 percent based on Tuesday’s closing price of $5.75.

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Republic’s flat year

November 12, 2014 by

Republic_bankOperating expenses rose 20.5 percent for Trinidad’s Republic Bank and loans loss provisions more than doubled to $119 million from $57 million in 2013, to help keep profit virtually flat, for the 2014 financial year ending September.
These expenses, grew at a much faster pace than the 11 percent increase in revenues of $3.75 billion. In the end, profit after tax crawled to $1.2 billion from $1.15 billion in 2013. Republic declared a dividend of $3 per share which will results in a total payment for the year of $4.25. Earnings share for the year is $7.39 the stock traded last at TT$120, putting the PE to 16. increased profit going forward will be needed to make a major he stock price at this PE ratio.
Republic increased loan provisions in Guyana but suffered from weak economic conditions in Grenada and Barbados. The bank closed the year with total assets amounting to $59.4 billion and equity of $8.7 billion.
While on the surface 2015 should show improved results, the sharp drop in the price of oil below 80 per barrel, could create uncertainty for investors, who may want to be cautious in taking on debt in the Trinidad economy and it could create economic problems for the oil dependent nation if it remains low for a prolonged period.

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Tax cut help boost D&G profit 30%

November 5, 2014 by

RED STRIPE factDesnoes & Geddes, brewers of the world famous Red Stripe beer, racked up a 30 percent increase in after tax profit, for the quarter to September this year, thanks partly to a reduction in tax, a 3 percent revenue increase and static to reducing cost. Profit before tax increased 14.5 percent to $640 million from $559 million in 2013. Revenues grew just 3 percent to $3.4 billion in the quarter but taxes fell from $192 million in the 2013 to $164 million as the tax rate for companies dropped to 25 percent form 30 percent for 2013.
Gross profit margin improved to 71.76 percent, in the latest quarter, from 69.25 percent last year. The improvement in the margin flowed in part from what management says are “efficiency gains from the investment in the brewery modernization such as the new combined heat and power plant.”
Gross profit improved by 14.7 percent to reach $1.156, as local sales grew 4.8 percent year over year, to reach $2.95 billion. Exports sales fell to $414 million from $465 million in 2013 leading to a fall in gross profit in the export segment to $226 from $291 million. Management stated that the reduction in exports is due to shift in the timing of a Shipment from the September quarter to the December quarter.
The company benefited from lower general, selling and administrative cost which fell to $261 million in the quarter, compared to $288 million in the 2013 quarter.
Cash funds at the end of the quarter, stood at $1.79 billion. The company declared a dividend of 27 cents per share, payable in December to cost $760 million and will be adequately funded by the earnings, for the December quarter. With the planned dividend, the company will pay 52 cents per share, in dividend for the 2014, providing a yield of just over 10 percent, based on the price of $5.10 at the end of 2013.
IC Insider is projecting earnings of 85 cents per share, for the year ending June 2015 and $1.05, for the following year. The stock which last sold at $4.95 remains an IC insider BUY RATED stock.

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Dividend by Medical Disposables

November 3, 2014 by

Image courtesy of DreamDesigns/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image courtesy of DreamDesigns/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Medical Disposables & Supplies declared their first dividend, since listing in December, last year.
Medical Disposables will be paying an interim dividend of 4 cents per share on November 19, to shareholders on record at November 14, 2014. The stock which is listed on the junior market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, will start trading ex-dividend, on November 12, 2014.
The company is enjoying good times, with improved results for the September quarter, with profit after tax rising 66 percent for the quarter, versus the 2013 quarter. For the six months, profit after tax rose 60.6 percent, to $38.7 million, from $24 million.

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D&G increases dividend

November 3, 2014 by

D&GRed-StripeSilos280x150Desnoes & Geddes will be paying an interim dividend of 27 cents per share on December 15, to shareholders on record at November 13.
The stock will trade ex-dividend on November 11. The company paid an interim dividend of 20 cents per share and a special dividend of 5 cents per share on December 20, last year.
They also paid interim dividend of 10 cents per share and a special dividend of 15 cents per share on May 16, 2014.

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Profit up strongly at D&G, more expected

September 1, 2014 by

RED STRIPE factDesnoes & Geddes brewers of the world renowned Red Stripe Beer, reported impressive results for the year to June 2014, with pretax profit jumping 96 percent, including a gain on sale of shares, in two overseas breweries in the Caribbean. Excluding this one off gain, profit before tax would have been up by a still respectable 45 percent to $2.7 billion, instead of the $3.68 billion reported.
Profit after tax ended at $3.15 billion, but excluding the gain from the shares, it would have been $2.2 billion or 80 percent up, instead of the 160 percent increase the net result shows. Net profit benefited from a reduction in the tax rate from 30 percent in 2013 to 25 percent in 2014, in addition, other income that was negative in 2013 at $130 million, was a positive $232 million in 2014, a swing of $360 million. Profit before tax amounted $928 million for the June quarter versus just $371 million in June 2013 quarter and after tax credit, $1 billion, compared with only $161 million in 2013.
Gross profit margin improved slightly from 50.13 percent in 2013 to end at 50.38 in 2014. In 2012 gross profit margin was at 44.86 percent. The 2014 performance is still well off the 60 percent achieved in 2006. During the 2014 financial year staff cost was cut due to redundancies, from $2.25 billion in 2013 to $1.74 billion for 2014, a reduction of $500 million, in addition the company spent $311 million in making staff redundant in 2013. These two items resulted in more than $800 million cost reduction in 2014 versus 2013.
Revenue for the year climbed 10.6 percent to $14 billion and in the final quarter it grew by a stronger 17 percent, to $3.84 billion, from $3.3 billion in 2013. Foreign sales declined by 7 percent for the year to June, to end at $1.8 billion while local sales climbed 13.75 percent to $12.3 billion. The US market declined the most, falling from $566 million to $300 million. Royalties earned declined during the year to $525 million, from $556 million.
While earnings per share in the audited accounts is $1.12, earnings from ongoing operations is 77.6 cents for 2014. IC Insider forecast earnings of 90 cents per share for the current year ending June 2015, with the stock price under $5, the potential exists for investors to make a nice capital gain down the road and collect tidy dividend payments while they wait.
D&G has embarked on a brewery consolidation “project which will configure the brewery and process layout to ensure more cost effective production. By closing down the cellars and moving from horizontal to vertical processing vessels, we will reduce operating cost” management said in a report to shareholders. The company in April commissioned a combined heat and power plant which is expected to reduce energy cost.
At year end cash funds stood at $1.79 billion, current assets amounted to $4.6 billion and current liabilities at $2.6 billion, there were no loans on the books as of June.
The stock which was placed on the Buy Rated list months ago, remains there.

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