Trading climbed sharply on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Monday, with the volume of stocks traded rising 57 percent and the value 46 percent more than on Friday, and ended with trading occurring in 46 securities compared with 45 on Friday and ended with 15 rising, 17 declining and 14 closing unchanged.
Investors traded 9,252,473 shares for $22,159,172, up from 5,893,458 units at $15,143,469 on Friday.
Trading averaged 201,141 shares at $481,721, compared with 130,966 shares at $336,522 on Friday with a month to date, average of 139,009 units at $340,427 compared with 125,959 stock units at $310,749 on the previous day. Trading in April closed with an average of 266,661 units at $2,583,503.
ONE on ONE Educational was the market leader with 2.63 million shares for 28.4 percent of the total volume, followed by Fosrich with 1.34 million units for 14.5 percent of the day’s trade and Indies Pharma with 1.03 million units for 11.1 percent of the day’s trade.
at the close, the Junior Market Index advanced 1.65 points to settle at 3,765.78.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.4. 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 six stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial rose 75 cents to $25.75, with investors trading 230 shares, AMG Packaging lost 27 cents in closing at $2.67 in switching ownership of 1,001 stocks, Cargo Handlers climbed 80 cents to end at $13.80 after it closed with an exchange of 87 stock units. Caribbean Assurance Brokers fell 11 cents to $1.89, with 216,156 units changing hands, Consolidated Bakeries lost 22 cents to end at $2.17 as investors exchanged just 201 shares, EduFocal rallied 12 cents to $2.05 after an exchange of 83,043 units. Elite Diagnostic gained 17 cents to end at $2.57, with 151 stocks crossing the market, Express Catering dipped 8 cents in closing at $5.20 in an exchange of 2,648 stock units, Fosrich declined 10 cents to $2.51 after a transfer of 1,340,993 shares.
General Accident shed 15 cents to close at $4.93 with a transfer of 66,482 stock units, iCreate popped 8 cents to end at $1.55 with investors transferring 183,124 units, Indies Pharma declined 34 cents to $3 after an exchanging of 1,028,634 stocks. Jamaican Teas rose 11 cents to close at $2.09 in an exchange of 36,441 shares, Limners and Bards advanced 22 cents in closing at $2.45 as 45,931 stocks passed through the market, Mailpac Group dipped 7 cents to end at $2.01 while exchanging 148,273 units. Main Event dropped 79 cents in closing at $12.50, with 46,273 stock units clearing the market, Medical Disposables lost 60 cents to end at $5.01 in trading 76 stock units, 
MFS Capital Partners fell 11 cents to $3.45, with 342,404 shares crossing the exchange and Stationery and Office Supplies increased 98 cents and ended at $15.50 with an exchange of 1,100 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
ICTOP10 Image Plus price jump 9%
With interest rates softening, some life has entered the Jamaica stock market, with the Junior Market posting gains for a second consecutive week, but the Main Market suffered a mild retreat following notable increases in the last week of April as several ICTOP10 stocks posted solid gains, including Image Plus that posted impressive full year results at the end of the previous week.
Dr. Karlene McDonnough – Chairman of Image Consultants Ltd.
The week ended with several sizable winners in the ICTOP10 and one big loser. Lasco Distributors rose 13 percent to lead the winning stocks, followed by Everything Fresh with a strong 11 percent climb to $1.66, Consolidated Bakeries rose 10 percent to $2.39, Image Plus rallied 9 percent and iCreate rose by 5 percent to $1.47 and fell out of the ICTOP10 and is replaced by Jamaican Teas. Iron Rock Insurance fell 18 percent to close at $1.88 and General Accident slipped 6 percent to $5.08, being the only two losers of significance.
The price of Main Market listed Berger Paints rose 10 percent to $8.30, Caribbean Producers gained 8 percent in closing at $10.56, with the stocks seemingly poised to get back to the $12 region sooner than later as the supply of stocks being sold below $13 has virtually dried up. 138 Student Living popped 6 percent to $5.35, JMMB Group fell 6 percent to $29.60, and Jamaica Broilers slipped 4 percent to $35.70.
Stocks are being prepped to rally, with signals that interest rates will be declining across the board sooner. This stems from the continued slide of BOJ CDs rates since March, which saw the rate falling by 25 percent to 8 percent this past week. Lower interest rates are around the corner, which will be positive for stocks and the signs are already showing.
At the previous week’s close, Image Plus released solid full year results showing profit after tax that jumped 125.6 percent to $213 million or 21 cents per share. Based on those numbers, ICInsider.com revised earnings for the current fiscal year to 35 cents from 30 cents previously. On Monday, the company reported revised results, with the profit being even higher at $252 million, with a reduction in the amount previously booked as professional fees. Based on the revision, projected earnings were raised by the publication to 40 cents per share for the current fiscal year. The stock sits at the number three spot in the ICTOP10. The revision raises some serious questions about how such matters escaped the directors, auditors and the financial controller before the audited financial statements were released.
Dolla Financial fell out of the TOP10 at the end of the previous week and this past week released impressive first quarter results that excited investors who responded well to them by driving the price to close the week at $2.89, with the price hitting a high of $2.99 on Friday. The company seems poised to deliver ICInsider.com forecasted earnings of 40 cents, provided they obtain loans on a timely basis to on lend.
The Junior Market’s long history of rising around a month before the release of quarterly results and declining shortly after results are released seems to be starting with a rise of 108 points in the market index in the previous week with more this past week, with the supply of some stocks continuing to fall sharply.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 5.5, well below the market average of 13.5. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to have an average of 273 percent, to May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
The 16 highest valued Main Market stocks are priced at a PE of 15 to 110, with an average of 28 and 19 excluding the highest PE stocks and 20 for the top half excluding the stocks with the highest valuation.
The Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 5.7 compared with the market at 11.5. There are 12 stocks, or 25 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 26, averaging 20, well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 16, suggesting that this may currently be the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks. Junior Market is projected to rise by 258 percent to May 2024.
The differences between the average PE ratio of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the likely gains for ICTOP10 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.
Junior Market jumps on lower volumes
Declining stocks edged those rising on Thursday, with 16 rising, 18 declining and nine closed unchanged, that did not prevent the Market Index from jumping 40.23 points to 3,774.65 at the close of the Junior Market as the market moved higher throughout the day, with mostly moderate price changes, 
resulting in the volume of stocks traded falling 18 percent with the value 14 percent lower than on Wednesday with 43 securities trading compared with 46 on Wednesday.
Investors traded 4,043,628 shares for $9,615,722 versus 4,913,726 units at $11,171,881 on Wednesday.
Trading averaged 94,038 shares at $223,621 down from 106,820 shares at $242,867 on Wednesday, with a month to date average of 124,664 units at $304,083 compared with 134,717 stock units at $330,495 on the previous day. Trading in April closed with an average of 266,661 units at $2,583,503.
Image Plus Consultants led trading with 1.78 million shares for 44 percent of the volume followed by MFS Capital Partners with 313,487 units for 7.8 percent of the day’s trade and Regency Petroleum with 302,337 units for 7.5 percent market share.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.5. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed based on 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 ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close, EduFocal gained 9 cents to close at $2.05 in an exchange of 24,485 shares, General Accident rose 17 cents to end at $5.10 and closed after investors exchanged 21 stocks, GWest Corporation dropped 16 cents to close at 88 cents after investors traded 6,969 stock units. 
iCreate rose 9 cents to close at $1.50 with 3,154 units changing hands, Indies Pharma popped 22 cents to $3.34 with the swapping of 101 stock units, Iron Rock Insurance declined 41 cents to $1.88 as investors exchanged 202,572 units, KLE Group increased by 42 cents to end at $2.02, with 62 shares crossing the market, Knutsford Express advanced 9 cents and ended at $11.39 after 200 stock units passed through the market, Medical Disposables climbed 7 cents to close at $5.08 with 1,100 stock units clearing the market, MFS Capital Partners fell 18 cents in closing at $3.32 with investors transferring 313,487 units, Regency Petroleum rose 8 cents in closing at a 52 weeks’ high of $2.65 after investors ended trading of 302,337 stocks,
Stationery and Office Supplies lost 30 cents to end at $15.50 after an exchange of 1,557 shares and tTech climbed 21 cents to $2.49 in trading 238 stocks.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trading drops for Junior Market
The Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange declined for a second day on Wednesday, after a 34 percent decline in the volume of stocks traded carrying a value 40 percent lower than on Tuesday with 46 securities trading compared with 43 on Tuesday and ended with 18 rising, 22 declining and six closing unchanged.
Investors traded 4,913,726 shares for $11,171,881 versus 7,417,293 units at $18,473,506 on Tuesday.
Trading averaged 106,820 shares at $242,867, compared to 172,495 shares at $429,616 on Tuesday with the month to date, averaging 134,717 units at $330,495 compared with 149,813 stock units at $377,917 on the previous day. The average for April ended with 266,661 units at $2,583,503.
Image Plus Consultants led trading with 1.85 million shares for 37.6 percent of the total volume followed by ONE on ONE Educational with 377,273 units for 7.7 percent of the day’s trade and Regency Petroleum with 347,374 units for 7.1 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index lost 17.40 points to end at 3,734.42.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.4. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded stock 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 three with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial popped 8 cents to close at $25.98, with just 9 shares crossing the market, CAC 2000 declined 9 cents in ending at $8 after 1,021 units were trade, Caribbean Cream increased 17 cents to $3.47, with a mere 3 stock units being traded, Consolidated Bakeries climbed 19 cents to $2.39 while exchanging 5,500 stocks, Dolphin Cove rallied 34 cents to end at $15.30, with 1,739 units clearing the market, EduFocal dipped 9 cents to close at $1.96 in an exchange of 120,100 shares, Everything Fresh shed 19 cents to end at $1.49 after exchanging 9,395 stock units, Fontana gained 10 cents in ending at $8.50 with investors transferring 7,327 stocks,
Fosrich rose 8 cents in closing at $2.58 with the swapping of 267,502 shares, General Accident fell 7 cents to $4.93 as investors exchanged 10,000 units, iCreate lost 18 cents to end at $1.41 in switching ownership of 78,701 stocks, ISP Finance dropped $2.85 to $19.65 after a transfer of 20 stock units, Jamaican Teas shed 13 cents in closing at $2.07 as 175,155 shares passed through the market, Jetcon Corporation declined 12 cents to $1.07 in an exchange of 147,542 stock units, JFP Ltd lost 7 cents and ended at $1.82, as 12,550 units crossed the exchange, KLE Group dipped 42 cents to $1.60 with a transfer of 246 stocks, Lasco Distributors rallied 24 cents to end at $2.72, with 101,411 stock units crossing the exchange, Limners and Bards increased 28 cents in closing at $2.50 after an exchange of 200 units, Lumber Depot dropped 6 cents to close at $2.33 with 23,001 stocks changing hands, Medical Disposables fell 99 cents to $5.01 after an exchange of 600 shares, 
MFS Capital Partners declined 10 cents to close at $3.50 in trading 290,827 shares, Paramount Trading shed 24 cents in closing at $2.08 in an exchange of 103,000 stocks and Regency Petroleum climbed 7 cents and ended at $2.57 after 347,374 stock units passed through the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Juniors drop
The Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange dropped on Tuesday even as the volume of stocks traded climbed 40 percent, with the value 35 percent higher than on Monday with trading in 43 securities compared with 42 on Monday and ended with 12 rising, 21 declining and 10 closing unchanged.
Investors traded 7,417,293 shares for $18,473,506 up from 5,316,848 units at $13,649,412 on Monday.
Trading averaged 172,495 shares at $429,616 compared to 126,592 shares at $324,986 on Monday, with the month to date averaging 149,813 units at $377,917 versus 126,592 stocks at $324,986 on the previous day. April ended with an average of 266,661 units at $2,583,503.
Image Plus Consultants led trading with 2.91 million shares for 39.3 percent of total volume followed by Fosrich with 905,754 units for 12.2 percent of the day’s trade and Jamaican Teas with 553,771 units for 7.5 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index shed 31.39 points to finish at 3,751.82.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.5. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded price in conjunction with ICInsider.com 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 six with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial lost 8 cents to close at $25.90 after 194 shares passed through the market, Consolidated Bakeries lost 19 cents to end at $2.20 in an exchange of 35,418 stock units, EduFocal popped 9 cents in closing at $2.05 with 58,226 stocks changing hands, Fontana shed 10 cents to finish at $8.40 with a transfer of 98,662 units, Fosrich fell 20 cents to $2.50 in trading 905,754 stock units, 
Honey Bun gained 7 cents to close at $6.47 in an exchange of 15,689 stocks, iCreate advanced 9 cents to $1.59 with investors transferring 63,005 units, Image Plus Consultants rallied 9 cents to $2.14 with 2,912,396 shares clearing the market, ISP Finance declined 48 cents in closing at $22.50 as investors swapped a mere 4 units, Jamaican Teas dipped 20 cents to $2.20 in an exchange of 553,771 shares, JFP Ltd rose 8 cents to end at $1.89 in trading 252,489 stock units, Knutsford Express fell 8 cents to close at $11.31 in exchanging 7,243 stocks, Lasco Distributors declined 17 cents to $2.48 as investors exchanged 57,770 units, Mailpac Group shed 20 cents in closing at $2.09 with 98,367 stock units changing hands, Main Event gained 20 cents to close at $13.35 in transferring 5,678 stocks, 
MFS Capital Partners rose 10 cents in closing at $3.60 with the swapping of 32,750 shares and Spur Tree Spices gained 8 cents to end at $2.70 with an exchange of 264,606 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
iCreate in ICTOP10 Image Plus EPS jumps
The markets are changing, with the Main Market up for three consecutive weeks but the Junior Market meandering for the last four weeks. Against this backdrop, there was one change to the TOP10, with iCreate coming in and Dolla Financial falling out, but Dolla and Honey Bun, that slipped out the previous week, sit immediately below the TOP10.
There were no significant winners for the past week in both markets’ TOP10 as losers dominated. The Junior market had Consolidated Bakeries falling 11 percent to $2.17 and general Accident down 10 percent to $5.40 and Lasco Distributors down 3 percent, with the stock selling at just 5.5 times 2023 estimated earnings and only 8.5 times the company’s nine month results. By any stretch, the stock is considerably undervalued and there are more profits to come in the current fiscal year.
Main Market stocks had a 13 percent fall in Key Insurance after the price closed at $3.08, Berger Paints contracted by 9 percent to $7.54 and 138 Student Living slipped 5 percent to $5.03, while Jamaica Broilers rose just 3 percent to $37.
Stocks are being prepped to rally, with early signals that interest rates will be declining across the board sooner than later. This stems from the continued slide of rates on BOJ CDs since March, that saw the rate falling by 23 percent to 8.11 percent against a background where inflation since November last year is running at less than one percent per annum.
At the week’s close, Image Plus released full year results showing profit after tax jumping 125.6 percent to $213 million or 21 cents per share. ICInsider.com revised earnings for the current fiscal year to 35 cents from 30 cents previously.
The Junior Market’s long history of rising around a month before the release of quarterly results and declining shortly after results are released seems to be starting with a rise of 108 points in the market index this past week, with the supply of some stocks falling sharply.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 5.4, well below the market average of 13.8, while the Junior Market Top 10 PE sits at 5.9 compared with the market at 11.6. The differences are important indicators of the level of likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks. The Junior Market is projected to rise by 257 percent and the Main Market TOP10 by an average of 280 percent to May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
The Junior Market has 11 stocks representing 23 percent of the market, with PEs from 15to 27, averaging 21, well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 17, suggesting that this may currently be the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks.
The 18 highest valued Main Market stocks are priced at a PE of 15 to 115, with an average of 29 and 20 excluding the highest PE stocks and 20 for the top half excluding the stocks with the highest valuation.
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 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.
Sharp jump for Junior Market
Trading closed on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Friday, with the volume of stocks traded jumping 170 percent and the value 197 percent more than on Thursday with 44 securities trading compared with 46 on Thursday and ended with 26 rising, just six declining and 12 left unchanged.
Investors traded 16,843,959 shares for $45,142,781 up sharply from 6,242,982 units at $15,183,837 on Thursday.
Trading averaged 382,817 shares at $1,025,972 compared with 135,717 shares at $330,083 on Thursday with the month to date, averaging 266,661 units at $2,583,503 compared to 259,810 stock units at $2,675,368 on the previous day. Trading in March ended with an average of 509,288 units at $1,071,868.
Spur Tree Spices led trading with 3.52 million shares for 20.9 percent of total volume followed by Jamaican Teas with 2.85 million units for 16.9 percent of the day’s trade, JFP Ltd with 2.76 million units for 16.4 percent market share, Regency Petroleum with 1.46 million units for 8.7 percent market share and Indies Pharma with 1.37 million units for 8.1 percent of total volume.
At the close, the Junior Market Index climbed 49.17 points to close at 3,737.92.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing stock values, averages 11.4. 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 seven stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, Access Financial increased $2.05 to close at $25.05 after an exchange of 13,833 shares, Blue Power popped 9 cents to end at $2.12 with the swapping of 42,033 stocks, CAC 2000 lost 9 cents to close at $8 with 100 units passing through the market, Caribbean Cream rose 30 cents to $3.30, with 961 stock units crossing the market. Dolphin Cove fell 37 cents in closing at $14.95, with 58,427 stocks changing hands, Elite Diagnostic advanced 9 cents in closing at $2.59 after ownership was switched for 11,100 shares, Express Catering gained 43 cents to close at $5.19 with investors transferring 14,547 units, 
Fontana climbed 16 cents to end at $8.50 closed with an exchange of 29,337 stock units. Fosrich shed 7 cents in ending at $2.70 after investors traded 394,931 stocks, Indies Pharma rallied 45 cents to $3.55 with an exchange of 1,369,691 shares, ISP Finance climbed $1.48 to end at $22.98 after an exchange of 20 units, JFP Ltd gained 7 cents in closing at $1.91 in an exchange of 2,764,674 stock units. Lasco Distributors popped 8 cents and ended at $2.29 with 171,499 shares clearing the market, Lasco Manufacturing rallied 20 cents to close at $4 after a transfer of 24,554 stock units, Limners and Bards gained 28 cents to close at $2.53, with 372,225 units crossing the market, Mailpac Group rose 10 cents to $2.24 after 102,442 stocks crossed the exchange. Main Event dipped 33 cents in ending at $13.15 as investors exchanged 3,582 stocks, MFS Capital Partners advanced 30 cents to end at $3.60 while exchanging 365,191 stock units, 
Regency Petroleum gained 25 cents to close at record high of $2.65 in an exchange of 1,459,284 units and Stationery and Office Supplies increased $2.47 in closing at $15.75 with a transfer of 121,763 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Consolidation continues for Junior Market
Trading picked up on Wednesday on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange, with a 66 percent jump in the volume of stocks traded with the value climbing 52 percent over that on Tuesday with investors trading in 44 securities similar to Tuesday and ended with prices of 18 rising, 14 declining and 12 closing unchanged.
Investors traded 7,960,577 shares for $17,940,729, up from 4,787,609 units at $11,820,076 on Tuesday.
Trading averaged 180,922 shares at $407,744 compared with 108,809 shares at $268,638 on Tuesday with the month to date, averaging 267,964 units at $2,829,487 compared with 273,803 stock units at $2,991,921 on the previous day, which is well up on March, with an average of 509,288 units at $1,071,868.
Jamaican Teas led trading with 1.95 million shares for 24.5 percent of total volume followed by Lumber Depot, with 1.51 million units for 18.9 percent of the day’s trade and Image Plus Consultants with 879,036 units for 11 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index fell 7.59 points to 3,692.92.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.6. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last traded stock 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 ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close, Blue Power dipped 40 cents to close at $2.03 with investors transferring 11,729 shares, Cargo Handler lost 20 cents after ending at $13.50 and investors trading 1,000 stock units, Dolphin Cove popped 32 cents in closing at $15.32 after exchanging 184 stocks. 
Elite Diagnostic gained 20 cents to close at $2.60, with 9,873 units changing hands, Everything Fresh shed 6 cents to end at $1.45 after investors exchanged 11,885 units, Express Catering dropped 8 cents to $5.42 with a transfer of 98,289 stocks. General Accident rose 50 cents in closing at $5.50 after an exchange of 53,052 shares, Honey Bun declined 16 cents to end at $6.32 with 1,439 stock units changing hands, Image Plus Consultants fell 11 cents after ending at $1.89, with 879,036 units crossing the market. ISP Finance popped $1.99 to close at $21.50 while exchanging just 10 shares, Jamaican Teas climbed 15 cents to $2.25 in trading 1,952,779 stock units, Knutsford Express declined 54 cents in closing at $10.55, with 12,002 stocks crossing the market. Lasco Distributors increased 11 cents to end at $2.42 with the swapping of 155,467 units, Lasco Manufacturing advanced 39 cents to $4.05 in an exchange of 31,717 stock units, 
Main Event lost 51 cents to close at $13.49 as investors exchanged 7,268 stocks. Medical Disposables gained 14 cents to end at $5.14, with 1,212 shares crossing the exchange and Regency Petroleum rose 6 cents in closing at $2.45 after a transfer of 144,832 stock units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Junior Market drops
Trading closed on the Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Tuesday, with the volume of stocks traded slipping 42 percent and the value 42 percent lower than on Monday with 44 securities trading, down from with 47 on Monday and ended with prices of 12 rising, 13 declining and 19 closing unchanged.
Investors traded 4,787,609 shares for $11,820,076 versus 8,185,073 units at $20,337,892 on Monday.
Trading averaged 108,809 shares at $268,638, down from 174,150 shares at $432,721 on Monday with a month to date, average of273,803 units at $2,991,921 compared with 285,665 stock units at $3,187,712 on the previous day and much higher than March with an average of 509,288 units at $1,071,868.
Lumber Depot led trading with 2.52 million shares for 52.6 percent of total volume, Spur Tree Spices followed with 408,695 units for 8.5 percent of the day’s trade and JFP Ltd with 326,393 units for 6.8 percent market share.
At the close, the Junior Market Index dropped 34.25 points close at 3,700.51.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.5. The PE ratios of Junior Market stocks are computed using the last 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 one stock ended with a bid higher than the last selling price and six with lower offers.
At the close, Cargo Handlers dropped 25 cents to close at $13.70 after a transfer of 1,011 shares, Derrimon Trading advanced 5 cents in closing at $2.10 in an exchange of 32,930 stocks, Dolphin Cove popped 5 cents to $15 in switching ownership of 7,877 units. Elite Diagnostic lost 10 cents to end at $2.40 with the swapping of 134,561 stock units, Future Energy Source climbed 13 cents after ending at $4.13 and trading 78,546 stocks, General Accident declined 80 cents after ending at $5, with 17,081 stocks crossing the exchange. JFP Ltd rose 6 cents to end at $1.79 in an exchange of 326,393 shares, Knutsford Express fell 30 cents to $11.09 after 5,184 units changed hands, Lasco Distributors shed 9 cents to close at $2.31, with 15,650 stocks clearing the market. Lasco Manufacturing dipped 45 cents in closing at $3.66 with an exchange of 41,304 stock units, Main Event gained 50 cents to close at $14 after exchanging 7,603 shares. 
MFS Capital Partners dipped 7 cents to end at $3.08 while exchanging 258,159 units and Tropical Battery increased 5 cents in closing at $1.94, with and exchange of 84,307 units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Junior Market drops to commence week
The Junior Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange Monday, pulled back at the start of the week as declining stocks clobbered those rising even as the volume of stocks traded jumped 123 percent and the value surged 117 percent more than on Friday following trading in 47 securities up from 40 on Friday and ended with 13 rising, 27 declining and seven closing unchanged.
Investors traded 8,185,073 shares for $20,337,892 up from 3,670,324 units at $9,384,503 on Friday.
Trading averaged 174,150 shares at $432,721, up from 91,758 shares at $234,613 on Friday, with a month to date average of 285,665 units at $3,187,712 compared with 294,941 stock units at $3,416,889 on the previous trading day. March closed with an average of 509,288 units at $1,071,868.
Dolla Financial led trading with 1.91 million shares for 23.3 percent of total volume, Derrimon Trading followed with 1.80 million units for 22 percent of the day’s trade and Image Plus Consultants with 707,184 units for 8.6 percent market share.
The Junior Market Index lost 39.60 points at the close and concluded trading at 3,734.76.
The PE Ratio, a measure of computing appropriate stock values, averages 11.5. 
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 three with lower offers.
At the close, AMG Packaging rallied 20 cents after to end at $3, with 10,212 shares crossing the market, CAC 2000 popped 33 cents in closing at $8.10 with a transfer of 391 stocks, Caribbean Cream advanced 19 cents to end at $3.49 after trading 1,101 units. EduFocal lost 9 cents to end at $2.10 in trading 19,133 stock units, Elite Diagnostic rose 10 cents to close at $2.50 while exchanging 1,874 shares, Future Energy Source fell 10 cents in closing at $4, with 651,264 stocks crossing the exchange. 
General Accident shed 18 cents in ending at $5.80 after investors swapped 1,252 units, Honey Bun dipped 9 cents to close at $6.48, with 15,978 stock units clearing the market, iCreate dropped 14 cents to $1.45 in an exchange of 172,094 shares. ISP Finance dropped $1.49 to $19.51 as investors traded 83 stock units, Jetcon Corporation fell 24 cents to close at $1.06, with 2,925 units crossing the market, Knutsford Express lost 30 cents in closing at $11.39 after an exchange of 1,470 stocks. Limners and Bards gained 10 cents to $2.32 as 151 stock units passed through the market, Main Event dropped $1.20 after ending at $13.50 with an exchange of 19,614 stocks,
Spur Tree Spices shed 9 cents to end at $2.80 after exchanging 258,268 units and Stationery and Office Supplies dropped 89 cents in closing at $14.11 and closed, with an exchange of 10,980 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.