The majority of stocks declined on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday, with trading in 42 securities, the same as Thursday and ended with prices of 15 rising, 18 declining and nine closing unchanged, following a 16 percent decline in the volume of stocks traded with the value, 21 percent lower than on Thursday.
A total of 8,609,687 shares were traded for $20,924,228 compared with 10,235,296 units at $26,387,309 on Thursday.
Trading averaged 204,993 shares at $498,196 compared to 243,698 units at $628,269 on the preceding day, with the month to date averaging 197,517 units at $495,832 compared to 193,866 stock units at $494,677 on the previous day. July closed with an average of 326,541 units at $843,878.
Following the announcement of the nine for one stock split, Stationery and Office Supplies have been trading with increased daily volume and led trading on Friday, with 3.66 million shares for 42.5 percent of total volume, Dolla Financial followed with 1.52 million units for 17.6 percent of the day’s trade and Paramount Trading ended with 758,569 units for 8.8 percent market share.
At the close of trading, the Junior Market Index rose 22.99 points to 3,942.02.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 10.9. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows three stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial declined 15 cents to close at $25.30 with an exchange of 3 shares, AMG Packaging dropped 31 cents to end at $2.29 with 1,500 stock units clearing the market, Cargo Handlers gained $1.50 to $19 with a transfer of 500 units, Caribbean Assurance Brokers dipped 30 cents and ended at $2.60 after a transfer of 1,547 stocks. Dolla Financial lost 8 cents in closing at $2.80, with 1,516,624 stock units passing through the market, Dolphin Cove popped 98 cents and ended at $17 while exchanging 2,464 units, EduFocal fell 14 cents to end at $1.66, with 13,022 stocks crossing the exchange, Fontana advanced 20 cents to close at $11, with stakeholders trading 91,563 shares. 
General Accident rose 20 cents in closing at $4.90, with 1,000 stocks changing hands, Iron Rock Insurance climbed 31 cents to $2.41 and closed with an exchange of 5 stock units, Jamaican Teas increased 18 cents to end at $2.29 after an exchange of 600 units. JFP Ltd shed 9 cents in closing at $1.66 with shareholders swapping 487,556 shares, Lasco Manufacturing dipped 43 cents to $4.56 after exchanging 16,964 shares, Limners and Bards rallied 9 cents and ended at $1.99 as investors exchanged 20,405 units, Main Event declined 49 cents to close at $14.50 in switching ownership of 50 stocks. Paramount Trading climbed 16 cents and ended at $2.06, with 758,569 stock units crossing the market, Spur Tree Spices lost 11 cents to close at $2.33 in an exchange of 6,825 shares, 
Stationery and Office Supplies dropped 26 cents to $2.34 in trading 3,663,408 stock units, following the trading of 1.3 million units on Thursday following all the shares from the stock split was available for trading and tTech gained 11 cents in closing at $2.26 trading 37,481 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trading climbs for Junior Market
The Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange closed out July on a positive note on Monday, driven by a 110 percent surge in the volume of stocks traded following a 72 percent jump in value over Friday, with trading in 45 securities compared with 42 on Friday and ended with prices of 24 rising, 12 declining and nine closing unchanged.
Investors traded 24,315,536 shares for $54,444,749 up from 11,568,133 units at $31,577,030 on Friday.
Trading averaged 540,345 shares at $1,209,883, compared with 275,432 shares at $751,834 on Friday, with the month to date averaging 326,541 units at $843,878 compared to 315,596 stock units at $825,141 on the previous trading day. June closed with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Spur Tree Spices led trading with 7.30 million shares for 30 percent of total volume, followed by ONE on ONE Educational with 4.36 million units for 17.9 percent of the day’s trade, JFP Ltd chipped in with 4.06 million units for 16.7 percent market share, Lumber Depot closed with 2.63 million units for 10.8 percent market share and Dolla Financial ended with 2.02 million units for 8.3 percent of total volume.
At the close, the Junior Market Index climbed 30.73 points to settle at 3,940.00.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 10.9. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are calculated using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows six stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial popped $2.50 to $25.30, with investors exchanging 89,609 shares, Blue Power increased 38 cents to end at $2.90 as investors traded 122 units, Cargo Handlers rallied 30 cents to $17 with a transfer of 1,000 stock units, Caribbean Assurance Brokers dipped 9 cents to end at $2.90 after 24,617 stocks passed through the market. Caribbean Cream climbed 29 cents to close at $4.44 with shareholders swapping 2,737 stock units, Consolidated Bakeries declined 15 cents to $2.60 in an exchange of 10,055 units, Dolla Financial dropped 38 cents in closing at $2.50 after exchanging 2,016,744 stocks, EduFocal lost 17 cents to end at $1.63 in switching ownership of 63,909 shares. Everything Fresh 
rose 18 cents to close at $1.55 after investors traded 50,500 shares, Future Energy Source gained 9 cents and ended at $3.99 in trading 251,515 units, Honey Bun fell 80 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ closing low of $5.70, with 32,983 stocks clearing the market, Image Plus Consultants shed 12 cents in closing at $2.22 with 70,821 stock units crossing the exchange. Jamaican Teas advanced 15 cents and ended at $2.35 with an exchange of 179,913 stock units, JFP Ltd climbed 21 cents to $1.95 with 4,059,134 units changing hands, Knutsford Express advanced 94 cents to close at $11.90, with 46,155 stocks crossing the market, Lasco Distributors rose 12 cents to $4.11 while exchanging 55,572 shares. Lasco Financial shed 9 cents to close at $2.30 in an exchange of 5,999 stocks, Lumber Depot rallied 21 cents to end at $2.30 with investors transferring 2,629,305 shares, Medical Disposables increased 10 cents in closing at $4.10, after 1,423 units passed through the exchange, 
ONE on ONE Educational popped 8 cents in ending at $1.13 after a transfer of 4,359,129 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies popped 36 cents in closing at $3.15 after an exchange of 526,540 stock units, following the nine of one stock split taking effect on the exchange for the first time and Tropical Battery declined 19 cents to $1.92 and closed with 171,673 shares changing hands.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Solid gains for ICTOP10 stocks
Junior Market stocks put in an outstanding performance ranging from 13 to 38 percent, with declines being far lower, with the top losers suffering a ten percent fall after five stocks slipped on the ICOP10 and three stocks recorded strong gains. The Main Market TOP10 was far less robust, with gainers hitting 13 percent at the top and losers 6 percent and less.
Margaritaville Turks could land big gains.
With the healthy price movements, three new additions to the TOP10 lists are added this week. Margaritaville is now topping the Main Market Top 10, with potential gains of 820 percent as the company made a major leap forward in fortunes, following the rebound in tourism traffic in the region and Caribbean Producers fell out of the TOP10 with a 4 percent price rise for the week. Image Plus Consultants and Iron Rock Insurance return to the Junior Market ICTOP10 as Dolla Financial and Elite Diagnostics enjoyed considerable price recoveries and dropped out.
For the week, five Junior Market TOP10 stocks rose and five declined, while the Main Market ended with four rising and only two falling.
In the Junior Market, Dolla Financial was the star performer as it recovered from a 9 percent drop last to $2.08 to post a stunning 38 percent jump to $2.88, following news that Supreme Ventures acquired 15 percent of the company, but before a report that the CEO Kadeen Mairs resigned. Elite Diagnostics jumped 29 percent to $2 after falling the previous week to $1.55 and Dolphin Cove rose 13 percent to $16.88, also rising are iCreate and OneonOne, with gains of 5 percent to $1.05, respectively. Falling stocks include Everything Fresh, down 10 percent to $1.37, Caribbean Cream, followed by shedding 8 percent to $4.15, General Accident, fell 6 percent to $4.70 and Caribbean Assurance Brokers, lost 4 percent to end at $2.99.
In the Main Market, Caribbean Cement climbed 13 percent to $57.60, but that was before the company released six months’ results, with profit ending at $2.87 following a blowout second quarter with earnings of $2.53 per share and now seems on target for $8 for the year. Sygnus Credit Investments rose nine percent to $12.12, but JMMB Group fell six percent to $27.20 and Guardian Holdings slipped 4 percent to $438.
Elsewhere in the market, Lasco Distributors and Lasco Manufacturing released first quarter results, with a rise in profits for both. Pretax profit at Lasco Distributors jumped a robust 57 percent to $602 million and post-tax climbed a solid 38 percent to $448 million and resulted in ICInsider.com upgrading earnings for the full year to 65 cents from 55 cents previously. Lasco Manufacturing’s performance was more subdued, with pretax profit rising 28 percent and aftertax 27 percent to $721 million and $526 million, respectively and are in line with ICInsider.com’s full year’s forecast of 70 cents per share. Both companies are just outside the ICTOP10 but are ICBUYRATED with good upside potential.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 5.3, well below the market average of 13.1. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to have an average of 326 percent, to May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
The 14 most highly valued Main Market stocks representing 30 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 95, with an average of 30 and 21 excluding the highest PE ratios, with a PE of 23 for the top half and 18 excluding the stocks with the highest PEs.
The Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 5.8 compared with the market at 11. There are 11 stocks representing 23 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 39, averaging 20, well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 16, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently, and projected to rise by 248 percent to May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE ratio of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks.
Investors continue to nibble away at a number of stocks and gradually reducing the supply of several of them that are attractively priced as the market moves through the summer months, the start of the stock market year when new results will be coming to the market for investors to assess and determine what to do.
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 are likely to deliver the best returns up to the end of May 2024 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.
Junior Market advancers outnumber decliners
Rising stocks dominated trading on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Friday, with trading in 42 securities compared with 43 on Thursday and ending with prices of 19 rising, 11 falling and 12 closing unchanged following a 64 percent fall in the volume of stocks traded with the value 71 percent lower than on Thursday.
Investors traded 11,568,133 shares for $31,577,030 versus 32,557,136 units at $108,447,140 on Thursday.
Trading averaged 275,432 shares at $751,834 compared with 757,143 units at $2,522,027 on Thursday, with the month to date averaging 315,596 stocks at $825,141 compared with 317,611 stock units at $828,820 on the previous day. June closed with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Spur Tree Spices led trading with 7.28 million shares for 62.9 percent of total volume, followed by Dolla Financial with 2.27 million units for 19.6 percent of the day’s trade and iCreate with 316,785 units for 2.7 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index shed 26.28 points to land at 3,909.27.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are calculated using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows five stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and one with a lower offer. Stationery and Office Supplies is one stock closing with a higher bid than the last selling price ahead of the 9 to one stock split being effected at the start of trading on Monday and is a stock to watch for a likely sharp rally.
At the close, Access Financial lost $1.60 and ended at $22.80 in an exchange of 200 shares, AMG Packaging popped 16 cents to end at $2.66 after 74 stock units changed hands, CAC 2000 advanced 10 cents in closing at $5.10 with an exchange of 67,700 stocks, Derrimon Trading rallied 5 cents to close at $2 with investors transferring 4,826 units. Dolphin Cove rose 28 cents to $16.88 as investors exchanged 828 stocks, Future Energy Source gained 10 cents to $3.90, with 163,120 units changing hands,
General Accident declined 24 cents to end at $4.70 after 11,063 stock units passed the market, Honey Bun added 11 cents to close at $6.50 in trading 8,136 shares. Indies Pharma increased 11 cents and ended at $3.19 while exchanging 1,440 units, ISP Finance popped $3.99 in closing at $24.99 after an exchange of 3,750 stocks, Knutsford Express fell 72 cents to end at $10.96 with a transfer of 16,900 stock units, Lasco Manufacturing rallied 5 cents and ended at $4.75 in switching ownership of 28,399 shares. Regency Petroleum dropped 7 cents to close at $2.68, with 36,229 units crossing the exchange, Spur Tree Spices rose 30 cents in closing at $2.40 with shareholders swapping 7,280,447 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies shed $1.69 to $25.15, with 174,402 shares crossing the market ahead of the 9 for one stock split that will result in the stocks trading ex-split on Monday coming, 
that should result in a sharp jump in the stock price and Tropical Battery advanced 9 cents to $2.11, with stakeholders exchanging 136,599 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trading jumps on Junior Market
Trading closed on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Thursday, with the volume of stocks traded rising 157 percent and the value 204 percent more than on Wednesday, as Future Energy Source traded nearly 19 million shares for more than half of the day’s volume with trading occurring in 43 securities, the same as Wednesday and ended with prices of 20 rising, 16 declining and seven closing unchanged.
Investors traded 32,557,136 shares at $108,447,140 versus 12,676,118 units at $35,697,055 on Wednesday.
Trading averaged 757,143 shares at $2,522,027, compared with 294,793 stocks for $830,164 on Wednesday. Trading for the month to date averages 317,611 units at $828,820, compared with 293,808 stocks at $737,122 on the previous day. trading in June closed with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Future Energy Source led trading with 18.98 million shares for 58.3 percent of total volume, followed by Spur Tree Spices with 5.91 million units for 18.2 percent of the day’s trade and Dolla Financial with 4.19 million units for 12.9 percent of the day’s trade.
At the close, the Junior Market Index rallied 20.08 points to close at 3,935.55.
The PE Ratio, a measure used to compute appropriate stock values, averages 10.9. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are calculated using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows two stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and six with lower offers.
At the close, AMG Packaging fell 16 cents to close at $2.50, with stakeholders exchanging 205 shares, CAC 2000 shed $1.75 and ended at 52 weeks’ low of $5, with 20,928 stock units clearing the market, Cargo Handlers dipped 30 cents to end at $16.70, with 619 stocks crossing the exchange, Caribbean Assurance Brokers climbed 34 cents in closing at $3 after investors trading 500 units, Dolla Financial popped 10 cents to $2.85 with a transfer of 4,191,695 units, 
Dolphin Cove rallied 55 cents to end at $16.60 while exchanging 1,933 stock units, Everything Fresh lost 10 cents to close at $1.37 with investors transferring 100 shares, Fontana rose 11 cents in closing at $11, with 62,075 stock units crossing the market, Image Plus Consultants advanced 12 cents and ended at $2.37 after an exchange of 23,227 stock units, Iron Rock Insurance increased 10 cents to $2.10 after a transfer of 107 stocks, Knutsford Express gained 8 cents in closing at $11.68 with an exchange of 15 shares, Lasco Manufacturing dipped 15 cents to close at $4.70 in an exchange of 10,460 units, Main Event declined 98 cents to end at $14.50 in trading 8,256 shares, 
Spur Tree Spices popped 10 cents to $2.10 with shareholders swapping 5,913,892 stocks and Stationery and Office Supplies dipped 66 cents to $26.84 after 109,557 units changed hands.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trading jumps on Junior Market
Trading jumped to close the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Wednesday, with a 19 percent rise in the volume of stocks traded as the value jumped 45 percent compared with trading on Tuesday following trading in 43 securities, the same number as traded on Tuesday and ended with prices of 13 rising, 22 declining and eight closing unchanged.
Investors traded 12,676,118 shares at $35,697,055, compared to 10,678,936 units at $24,677,448 on Tuesday.
Trading averaged 294,793 shares at $830,164 compared to 248,347 units at $573,894 on Tuesday with a month to date average of 293,808 units at $737,122 compared with 293,751 stocks at $731,795 on the previous day. June closed with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Dolla Financial led trading with 7.45 million shares for 58.8 percent of total volume, followed by ONE on ONE Educational with 1.58 million units for 12.4 percent of the day’s trade and Spur Tree Spices with 643,534 units for 5.1 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index rose 3.11 points to close at 3,915.47.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 10.9. 
The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are calculated using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows five stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and five with lower offers.
At the close, Blue Power dipped 12 cents to $2.50 as investors traded 2,917 shares, Cargo Handlers fell $3.98 to close at $17 by clearing the market of 5,455 stock units, Caribbean Assurance Brokers declined 44 cents in closing at $2.66 with shareholders exchanging 37,788 stock units, Consolidated Bakeries rose 14 cents to end at $2.75 in an exchange of 11,283 stocks. Dolla Financial climbed 35 cents and ended at $2.75 with a transfer of 7,454,856 stock units, 
Fontana lost 11 cents in closing at $10.89 after a transfer of 29,968 units, Future Energy Source shed 21 cents to close at $3.74, with investors exchanging 199,795 stocks, Honey Bun increased 39 cents to end at $6.45 as 150,912 shares passed through the market. Indies Pharma dropped 13 cents to $3.06 after an exchange of 25,807 units, KLE Group fell 19 cents to $1.49 with investors transferring 6,558 stocks, Knutsford Express popped 95 cents in closing at $11.60 after an exchange of 5,309 shares, Main Event rallied 91 cents to close at $15.48 in switching ownership of 33,569 units. Medical Disposables lost 30 cents to close at $4, with 37,159 stocks crossing the market, MFS Capital Partners advanced 15 cents to $2.55, with an exchange of 468,075 units, Paramount Trading gained 10 cents to finish trading at $1.90 while exchanging 200 shares. 
Stationery and Office Supplies shed 48 cents and ended at $27.50 in an exchange of 107,689 stock units and Tropical Battery dropped 9 cents to $1.95 and closed with 433,555 units changing hands.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Junior Market falls again
The Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange slipped at the close of trading on Tuesday, after a big jump in the volume of stocks traded, with a 179 percent jump after a 94 percent rise in value compared with trading on Monday following trading in 43 securities compared with 45 on Monday and ending with prices of 16 rising, 18 declining and nine closing unchanged as the market closed with two stocks hitting intraday 52 weeks’ Low and one closing at a 52 weeks’ low.
Investors traded 10,678,936 shares at $24,677,448, up from 3,833,833 units for $12,740,526 on Monday.
Trading on Tuesday averaged 248,347 shares for $573,894 versus 85,196 shares at $283,123 on Monday. Trading for the month to date averaged 293,751 units at $731,795 compared with 296,509 units at $741,385 on the previous day. June ended with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
ONE on ONE Educational led trading with 2.26 million shares for 21.2 percent of total volume, followed by Dolla Financial with 2.26 million units for 21.1 percent of the day’s trade, Paramount Trading closed with 1.95 million units for 18.3 percent market share and Spur Tree Spices with 1.44 million units for 13.5 percent of total volume.
At the close, the Junior Market Index dipped 5.62 points to 3,912.36, but the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator is reflecting more negative signs, with three stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and seven with lower offers.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 11. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are calculated using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
At the close, AMG Packaging increased 16 cents to $2.66 in an exchange of just 444 shares, Blue Power fell 37 cents to close at $2.62, with stakeholders exchanging 16,428 stock units, Cargo Handlers rose $2.98 to $20.98, with 1,221 stocks changing hands, Caribbean Cream dropped 40 cents in closing at $4.08, with the passage of 2,611 units through the market. Caribbean Flavours rallied 10 cents to $1.33, with 8,001 stocks clearing the market, Dolla Financial climbed 21 cents in closing at $2.40 while exchanging 2,255,034 stock units, Everything Fresh popped 8 cents and ended at $1.47 after a transfer of 9,001 units, 
Fontana gained 8 cents to end at $11 with a transfer of 120,687 shares. Future Energy Source advanced 15 cents to $3.95, with 147,491 stocks being traded, Honey Bun declined 43 cents to close at $6.06, with 37,303 shares crossing the exchange, Image Plus Consultants lost 18 cents and ended at $2.30 in trading 154,518 units, Iron Rock Insurance dipped 50 cents in closing at $2 in an exchange of 24,721 shares. Medical Disposables shed 76 cents to end at $4.30 after an exchange of 15,440 stock units, MFS Capital Partners dipped 18 cents to close at $2.40 with 143,773 shares crossing the market, 
Stationery and Office Supplies advanced 10 cents to $27.98 with an exchange of 92,464 stocks and Tropical Battery increased 19 cents in closing at $2.04 after trading 323,285 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Major price changes for ICTOP10
The past week was one of contrast, with the Main Market rising and the Junior Market declining moderately, as the ICOP10 stocks recorded mixed results ranging from increases of 21 percent and losses of as much as 12 percent, at the same time, Transjamacian Highway that ended last week at $2.78, came under selling pressure on Friday and closed at $2.50 after reaching a record high of $2.88 on Monday and continues to a great buy, especially with the price pulling back.
Guardian Holdings jumped 21 percent during the week
For the week, 5 Junior Market TOP10 stocks declined and just two rose, while the Main Market ended with 5 rising and 4 declining. Image Plus closed at a record high on Friday and dropped out of the TOP10 along with Iron Rock Insurance. Everything Fresh and Elite Diagnostic replaced them, with the latter dropping to a record low of $1.55. There were no changes to the listing for the Main Market TOP10.
In the Junior Market, Image Plus having listed in January this year and never got the usual big IPO bounce, now seems to be just coming into its own, with a 20 percent jump to close the week at $2.50 after the price hit a record high of $2.60 on Friday and was followed by Caribbean Cream, up 10 percent to $4.49 as declining stocks dominated the week with iCreate dropping 12 percent to $1, followed by Dolla Financial shedding 9 percent to $2.08, with Dolphin Cove and OneonOne falling 8 percent to $15 and $1 respectively.
Guardian Holdings jumped 21 percent to $455, following changes in NCB Financial top management team, while Caribbean Producers rose 8 percent to $10.77, Sygnus Credit 
Investments fell 12 percent to $11.17 and Caribbean Cement slipped 9 percent to $50.03.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 6, well below the market average of 13.1. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to have an average of 256 percent, to May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
The 14 most highly valued Main Market stocks representing 30 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 98, with an average of 30 and 20 excluding the highest PE ratios, with a PE of 23 for the top half and 18 excluding the stocks with the highest PEs.
The Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 5.6 compared with the market at 11.1. There are 9 stocks representing 19 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 41, averaging 21 that are well above the average of the market. The top half of the market has an average PE of 16, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently and projected to rise by 264 percent to May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE ratio of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks.
Investors continue to nibble away at a number of stocks and gradually reducing the supply of several of them that are attractively priced as the market moves through the summer months, the start of the stock market year when new results will be coming to the market for investors to assess and determine what to do.
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 are likely to deliver the best returns up to the end of May 2024 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 and result 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.
Junior Market slips, with dominant declining stocks
Trading closed on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Thursday, with the volume of stocks traded declining 21 percent with a moderately lower value than on Wednesday, with 43 securities trading, compared with 44 on Wednesday and ended with ten rising, 23 falling and ten closing unchanged.
Investors traded 6,180,875 shares for $20,046,474 versus 7,810,602 units at $20,148,012 on Wednesday.
Trading averaged 143,741 shares at $466,197 compared with 177,514 units at $457,909 on Wednesday, Trading month to date ended with an average of 319,331 stocks at $790,601 down from 332,485 units at $814,903 on the previous day. Trading in June ended with an averaged of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Image Plus Consultants was the lead trade with 2.33 million shares at 37.6 percent of total volume, followed by Dolla Financial with 1.34 million units for 21.7 percent of the day’s trade and Future Energy Source with 305,991 units for 5 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index declined 18.41 points to 3,963.00.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.1. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows four stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and six with lower offers.
At the close, Caribbean Cream fell 29 cents and ended at $4.20 after trading 10,214 shares, Caribbean Flavours shed 12 cents to close at $1.23 with an exchange of 64,838 stocks, Consolidated Bakeries climbed 20 cents to $2.80 while exchanging a mere 13 units. Dolphin Cove increased 69 cents to end at $16.99, with stakeholders exchanging 20,925 stock units, Elite Diagnostic lost 10 cents in closing at $1.90, with 900 stock units crossing the market, Everything Fresh dipped 14 cents to $1.40 after investors exchanged 3,813 stocks. General Accident declined 26 cents to close at $4.70, with 834 units changing hands, Honey Bun dropped 34 cents to end at $6.10 in switching ownership of 2,372 shares, Image Plus Consultants dipped 8 cents in closing at $2.22 in an exchange of 2,326,364 units after posting a record intraday high of $2.55.
Iron Rock Insurance popped 40 cents and ended at $2.50 with investors transferring just four stock units, Jamaican Teas shed 10 cents in closing at $2.10 after an exchange of 33,514 shares, Lasco Distributors declined 18 cents to close at $4 in trading 150,218 stocks. Lasco Financial dropped 10 cents at $2.30 and closed after an exchange of 13,577 units, Limners and Bards fell 14 cents and ended at $2.06, with 2,000 units clearing the market, Lumber Depot lost 16 cents to end at $2 after 38,281 shares crossed the market. Paramount Trading shed 20 cents to end at $1.80 in an exchange of 45,662 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies dropped $1.78 to close at $26 with shareholders swapping a solid 182,798 stocks days ahead of the nine for one stock split that is up for approval on Tuesday
at the company’s AGM with the ex-split data now set for July 31 with the record data moving up to August 2 from the originally stated July 25 and tTech dipped 32 cents in closing at $1.79 after 25,991 stock units passed through the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Rising stocks edged losers on Junior Market
The volume of stocks traded declined 88 percent and the value 85 percent on Tuesday on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Wednesday, and ended with 44 securities trading compared with 45 on Tuesday and closed with prices of 17 rising, 16 declining and 11 closing unchanged.
Investors traded 7,810,602 shares for $20,148,012 versus 63,417,243 units at $135,258,234.
Trading averaged 177,514 shares at $457,909 compared with 1,409,272 shares at $3,005,739 on Tuesday, with the month to date averaging 332,485 units at $814,903, down from 345,350 stocks at $844,540 on the previous day. June closed with an average of 319,230 units at $854,456.
Dolla Financial led trading with 3.42 million shares for 43.8 percent of total volume, followed by iCreate with 1.62 million units for 20.7 percent of trading and MFS Capital Partners chipped in with 356,333 units for 4.6 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index rose 27.45 points to conclude trading at 3,981.41.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.3. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com’s projected earnings for the financial years ending between November 2023 and August 2024.
Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows four stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial slipped 10 cents to $24.89, with investors exchanging just three shares, AMG Packaging popped 14 cents to $2.49 in an exchange of 3,974 stocks, Blue Power increased 36 cents to $2.99 as 8 stock units passed through the market, Cargo Handlers climbed $1.90 to $21.10 after 2,500 units crossed the market, Caribbean Assurance Brokers fell 10 cents in closing at $3.10 after an exchange of 446 stocks, Caribbean Cream rallied 40 cents to $4.49 and closed after 31 units changed hands, Consolidated Bakeries dipped 30 cents to close at $2.60, with 10,486 shares clearing the market, Dolla Financial lost 15 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ low of $2.10 in trading 3,418,116 stock units, but only after hitting an intraday low of $1.71. Dolphin Cove declined 81 cents to end at $16.30 with an exchange of 10,004 stocks, 
Elite Diagnostic dropped 15 cents in closing at $2, with 143,938 units crossing the exchange, Fontana shed 20 cents to end at $10.80 after investors ended trading 295,603 shares, Future Energy Source rose 8 cents to $3.97 while exchanging 195,231 stock units, GWest Corporation gained 13 cents to close at $1.07 with a transfer of 104 shares, Honey Bun climbed 71 cents in closing at $6.44, with 9,799 units changing hands, Indies Pharma advanced 11 cents to end at $3.20 with shareholders swapping 131,400 stock units, Iron Rock Insurance declined 40 cents in ending at $2.10 after a transfer of 237 stocks, Jamaican Teas climbed 8 cents in closing at $2.20 in switching ownership of 14,811 units, KLE Group fell 20 cents to close at $1.54 after an exchange of 200 shares, Knutsford Express lost 99 cents to close at $10.51 as investors exchanged 14,497 stocks, Lasco Distributors gained 28 cents to end at $4.18, with 294,817 stock units crossing the market, MFS Capital Partners dropped 16 cents in closing at $2.54 in an exchange of 356,333 shares, 
Paramount Trading rose 20 cents and ended at $2 with investors transferring 3,990 stock units, Stationery and Office Supplies increased 78 cents to close at $27.78, with 51,444 units crossing the market and Tropical Battery rallied 13 cents to end at $2.04 as investors exchanged 64,200 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.