The Junior Market lost more grounds at the close on Thursday as the market index declined by 43.06 points to end at 2,953.97 and landing the market with an 11.8 percent fall for the year to date and 19.4 percent since the peak in August last year.
Trading ended with 34 securities changing hands the same as on Wednesday, resulting in an exchange of 2,099,024 units for $7,953,736, compared to 3,482,018 units valued at $11,901,548 on Wednesday.
At the close, the prices of 11 securities advanced, 16 declined and 7 remained unchanged. The average PE Ratio for Junior Market stocks ended 12.2 times 2019 earnings.
Trading ended with an average of 61,736 units for an average of $233,933 in contrast to 102,412 units for $350,046 for each security traded on Wednesday. The average volume and value for the month to date amounts to 127,778 units valued at $296,606 and previously 111,408 units valued at $318,574. In contrast, January closed with an average of 137,619 units valued at $521,935 for each security traded
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading shows seven stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and one with a lower offer.
At the close of the market, Access Financial lost $1.28 in trading 8,829 shares to close at $29.03, AMG Packaging fell 5 cents, exchanging 1,000 shares to close at $2. Blue Power declined by 15 cents to settle at $3.55 with 41,385 shares crossing the market after the stock traded at an intraday low of $3.29, Caribbean Cream closed 30 cents higher to end at $3.65, with 1,330 units changing hands. Derrimon Trading closed 16 cents higher at $2.19, after hitting an intraday low of $1.88 with 63,837 stock units traded, Elite Diagnostic gained 2 cents to finish at $4.05, in trading 26,549 stock units, Everything Fresh ended trading 106,378 shares at $1.03, after rising 3 cents. Express Catering declined 20 cents in exchanging 60,400 units at $5.60, Fontana climbed 15 cents to settle at $6.55 with 118,764 shares changing hands, Fosrich closed trading of 9,071 units and lost 20 cents to end at $3.80 after hitting an intraday low of $3.21. General Accident shed 50 cents in trading 9,068 shares to close at $6, GWest Corporation closed trading of 14,959 units and lost 9 cents to end at $1.01, Honey Bun ended market activity exchanging 11,413 shares to close at $6.99 after rising 43 cents. iCreate settled at 72 cents with a gain of 5 cents in the swapping 14,066 units, Indies Pharma closed trading of 54,675 units and lost 5 cents to end at $2.85, Jamaican Teas gained 35 cents to close at $6.35 in the swapping 43,984 shares. 
Jetcon Corporation rose by 8 cents in trading of 345 units at $1.50, Key Insurance closed 20 cents higher at $3.40, with 75,721 units trading, Knutsford Express fell 50 cents to close at $10 with 2,501 units crossing the exchange. Lasco Distributors ended with a loss of 1 cent at $3.02, with 78,081 units changing hands, Lasco Financial ended trading with 28,706 shares, after declining 6 cents to end at $3.65. Limners and Bards lost 20 cents to end the day at $2.41 with 115,393 shares traded, Main Event closed 30 cents lower at $5.80, with 11,381 stock units trading. Paramount Trading lost 30 cents in trading 21,563 units at $1.50, SSL Venture exchanged 31,675 units and gained 8 cents to settle at $1.10 and Stationery and Office Supplies declined 75 cents to end at $9 with 9,107 shares changing hands.
In the Junior Market preference segment, Derrimon Trading lost 30 cents in trading of 6,818 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $1.50.
Prices of securities trading for the day are those at which the last trade took place.
At the close of trading, JSE Financial Index lost just 0.18 points to close at 131.54, a reflection that stocks in this segment of the market remain relatively stable on Thursday.
The average volume and value for the month to date amount to 669,453 units valued at $2,538,839 for each security changing hands compared to 489,068 units valued at 2,376,829 for each security traded. Trading in January resulted in an average of 626,134 units valued at $3,511,981 for each security.
Pulse Investments closed at $7.50, climbing $1.50 after a transfer of 510,319 shares, Sagicor Group gained 50 cents to end at $66.50, with 23,173 shares crossing the market. Scotia Group dropped $1.50 after trading 150,064 shares to close at $53, Stanley Motta rose 70 cents to $5.75 trading 6,768 shares and Sygnus Credit Investments lost $1 to end at $24.50, with 29,744 shares changing hands.
Republic Holdings traded at $142 but closed with the bid at $145 and offered at $150 the PE ratio is just 12 based on 2020 forecasted earnings with 20 being the target. Both stocks appear to have low supply around current prices.
Losses| JMMB Group shed 4 cents and ended at $2.70, with investors exchanging 365,844 stock units, One Caribbean Media fell 5 cents in transferring 612 shares at $7.95, Scotiabank ended trading with 10 units after slipping 9 cents to $61.40. Trinidad & Tobago NGL had 12,474 shares changing hands to close at a 52 weeks’ low of $20.40 after falling by 30 cents and West Indian Tobacco dropped $2 and settled at $38, with just 35 units changing hands.
It is unacceptable that some companies have to provide forecasted earnings regardless of how meaningless they may be and others with relevant information that can guide investors, keep it to themselves.
At the close of the market on Wednesday, the JSE All Jamaican Composite Index dived 6,722.84 points to close at 533,349.31, the JSE Market Index declined 6,069.73 points to 485,719.72 and the JSE Financial Index fell 1.22 points to 131.72. At the close, and Portland JSX closed at 52 weeks’ high while 138 Student Living traded at a 52 weeks’ intraday high of $6 and QWI investments closed at a 52 weeks’ low of 88 cents.
The average volume and value for the month to date amount to 489,068 units valued at 2,376,829 for each security changing hands compared to 600,940 units valued at 1,856,625 for each security traded. Trading in January resulted in an average of 626,134 units valued at $3,511,981 for each security.
PanJam Investment closed $1 higher to $101, with 28,085 shares changing hands, Proven Investments dropped $4.50 to settle at $44.50, after trading 18,085 units. Sagicor Group fell by $1 to $66, in exchanging 23,432 shares, Sagicor Real Estate Fund lost 60 cents and closed at $9, after transferring 9,650 units, Salada Foods lost $1 to end at $30, with and exchange of 4,400 shares Scotia. Group moved 78,726 shares at $54.50, after falling $2.50, Seprod lost 93 cents to finish at $45.07 after a swap of 5,521 shares, Sygnus Credit Investments gained $1 to end at $25.50, with 47,837 shares changing hands. Victoria Mutual Investments closed at $10.27, with a loss of 67 cents while trading 188,182 shares and Wisynco Group lost 50 cents, transferring 70,723 units to end the day’s trading at $22.50.
At the close of the market, the index is down 10.5 percent for 2020 to date and 18.2 percent since it peaked in August 2019.
At the close of the market, Blue Power climbed 20 cents in exchanging 19,694 shares at $3.70, Caribbean Cream dipped 35 cents in trading of 5,800 units at a 52 weeks’ low of $3.35, Cargo Handlers declined by 25 cents to settle at $8 with an exchange of 5,666 shares. Derrimon Trading ended the day with 57,595 shares changing hands after rising 3 cents to end at $2.03, Dolphin Cove closed 10 cents higher at $9.90, with 1,279 stock units traded, Elite Diagnostic fell 27 cents in trading of 48,099 units at $4.03. Everything Fresh declined 7 cents, swapping 217,903 units at $1, Fontana declined by 2 cents to settle at $6.40 with 110,646 shares changing hands, Fosrich closed trading of 8,000 units and gained 10 cents to end at $4. General Accident climbed 50 cents and exchanged 400 shares at $6.50, GWest Corporation closed trading of 5,000 units and gained 4 cents to end at $1.10, Honey Bun ended market activity exchanging 4,007 shares to close at $6.56 after falling 44 cents. iCreate settled at 52 weeks’ low of 67 cents after shedding 3 cents in the swapping of 37,619, Indies Pharma closed trading of 98,212 units and gained 4 cents to end at $2.90, Jamaican Teas ended the day with a loss of 35 cents at $6 in the swapping of 108,780 shares. 
Jetcon Corporation dropped 3 cents trading of 6,000 units at $1.42, Knutsford Express fell $1.50 to close at $10.50 with 6,655 units crossing the exchange, Lasco Financial ended trading with 35,602 shares, after rising 1 cent to end at $3.71. The Limners and Bards gained 11 cents to end the day at $2.61 with 36,617 shares traded, Lumber Depot ended market activity exchanging 544,386 shares to close at $1.52 after falling 3 cents, Main Event closed 30 cents higher at $6.10, with 100 stock units trading. Mailpac Group fell 10 cents in exchanging 567,179 units at $2, Medical Disposables closed with a loss of $1.30 to finish at $6.30 in the swapping of 2,300 shares and Stationery and Office Supplies climbed 5 cents to end at $9.75 with 11,000 shares changing hands.
One Caribbean Media added 5 cents in transferring 1,000 shares at $8 and Scotiabank ended trading with 18,091 units after rising 27 cents to $61.49.
At the close, the JSE All Jamaican Composite Index declined 4,862.18 points to close at 540,072.15, the JSE Market Index fell 4,352.68 points to 491,789.45 and the JSE Financial Index lost 0.45 points to 132.94.
Scotia Group transferred 4,797 units at $46, after losing $1, Seprod closed $1 lower at $46 after exchanging 4,797 shares. Supreme Ventures declined $1.35 to end at $21.60, in swapping 9,714 units, Sygnus Credit Investments shed $2 to $24.50, with 21,007 shares changing hands and Victoria Mutual Investments gained 84 cents to end at $10.94, in trading 106,620 shares.
Market activity ended with 33 securities changing hands, with the prices of nine advancing, 18 declining and five remaining unchanged. Trading resulted in an exchange of 4,430,356 units valued at $12,074,628 compared to 2,894,161 units valued at $6,925,513 on Monday. The average PE Ratio for the Junior Market stocks declined to 12.8 times, 2019 earnings.
Blue Power lost 50 cents with an exchange of 35,000 units to settle at $3.50, Caribbean Cream declined by 30 cents to close at $3.70 after trading 11,353 shares. Caribbean Producers ended with a loss of 1 cent at $4.80 with 9,662 stock units changing hands, Consolidated Bakeries finished the day exchanging 5,000 shares to close at $1.63 after falling 12 cents, Elite Diagnostic lost 15 cents in trading 491 units to close at $4.30. Everything Fresh ended the market activity with 23,773 shares crossing the exchange after rising 2 cents to end at $1.07, Express Catering lost 20 cents in trading of 17,406 units at $5.80, Fontana declined by 19 cents in swapping 88,897 units at $6.60. Fosrich dipped 30 cents in trading of 41,947 shares at $3.90, GWest Corporation closed trading of 7,000 units and gained 4 cents to end at $1.06, Honey Bun ended the day at $7 after rising 2 cents and trading 41,620 stock units. iCreate declined by 2 cents to settle at 70 cents with an exchange of 16,000 shares, Indies Pharma shed 5 cents in trading of 3,362 units at $2.86, Jamaican Teas declined by 15 cents trading 279,028 units at $6.35. Key Insurance lost 48 cents in exchanging 34,284 shares to close at $3.20, KLE Group shed 26 cents after swapping 4,931 at $2.04, Knutsford Express gained $1.12 to end at $12, after trading 35,702 shares. Lasco Distributors added 1 cent and exchanged 3,820 shares at $3.03, Lasco Financial gained 5 cents to finish at $3.70 with 142,546 crossing the exchange, 
Lasco Manufacturing ended with a loss of 1 cent at $3.95 with 51,170 stock units changing hands. Limners and Bards lost 40 cents in trading of 744,674 units at $2.50, Lumber Depot climbed 4 cents and exchanged 975,842 shares at $1.55, MailPac ended trading with 1,618,642 shares, after rising 10 cents to end at $2.10. Main Event lost 30 cents in exchanging 7,283 shares to close at $5.80, Medical Disposables ended with 14,571 shares changing hands, after rising 10 cents to end at $7.60, Paramount Trading climbed 25 cents and exchanged 2,530 shares at $1.80 and Stationery and Office Supplies ended market activity with 18,500 shares to close at $9.70 after falling 29 cents.
Ansa Merchant Bank dropped $1.95 to close at $36.05 with an exchange of 38 stock units, One Caribbean Media lost 5 cents in transferred 645 shares in closing at a 52 weeks’ low of $7.95. Scotiabank ended trading with 161 units after falling 7 cents to $61.22, Trinidad Cement fell 6 cents in exchanging 2,900 shares at a 52 weeks’ low of $1.89. Trinidad & Tobago NGL lost 8 cents in trading 4,898 shares to close at a 52 weeks’ low of $20.70 and Unilever Caribbean fell 4 cents and ended at a 52 weeks’ low of $22.01, with investors exchanging 3,004 shares.
