The All Jamaican Composite Index plunged 8,760.41 points to close 403,225.69, the JSE Main Index tumbled 7,585.01 points to 368,099.75 and the JSE Financial Index dropped 2.35 points to settle at 96.20 as the Jamaica Stock Exchange Main Market ended trading on Friday.
Friday’s fall, along with a big decline on Thursday, wiped out all of the 9,745.94 points gains recorded by the All Jamaican Composite Index on Wednesday.
As was the case on Thursday, trading ended with 41 securities changing hands on Friday and closed with the prices of 18 stocks rising, 14 declining and nine remaining unchanged. The average PE Ratio of the market ended at 15.6 based on the IC Insider.com forecast of 2020-21 earnings.
The market closed with an exchange of 27 percent more shares than on Thursday with an exchange of 9,117,461 shares compared to 7,166,466 as investors spent 77 percent more funds on stocks amounting to $80,839,987 versus $45,683,165 on Thursday. Transjamaican Highway led trading with 27.7 percent of total volume, for 2.53 million shares, followed by Sagicor Select Financial Fund with 17.1 percent or 1.56 million units, Wigton Windfarm with 14.3 percent for 1.30 million units and Wisynco Group closing with 13.3 percent, with 1.22 million units changing hands.
Trading ended with an average of 222,377 units changing hands at $1,971,707 for each security, compared to an average of 174,792 shares at $1,114,224 on Thursday. The average trade for the month to date ended at 198,584 units at $1,542,965 for each security, in contrast to September’s average of 265,170 units at $3,271,625.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows seven stocks ending with bids higher than their last selling prices and two with lower offers.
At the close of the market, Caribbean Cement rose 90 cents to close at $47.90, with 678 units passing through the market, Eppley Caribbean Property Fund gained $5.99 to end at $50, after an exchange of 11 units, Jamaica Broilers Group slid $1.50 to settle at $26, with 20,006 shares crossing the market. Jamaica Producers Group slipped 45 cents to close at $20.50, with investors swapping 1,359 units, Jamaica Stock Exchange ended at $18.21, after losing 86 cents exchanging 24,994 shares, Mayberry Investments gained 84 cents to settle at $6.14, with investors swapping 7,921 stock units. MPC Caribbean Clean Energy advanced by $28 to $163, after trading only one stock unit, NCB Financial fell $1 in closing at $130 and clearing the market with 91,324 shares, PanJam Investment climbed $2 to close at $68, in trading 24,433 stock units. Sagicor Group dropped $2.30 to $44.10, with investors switching ownership of 9,874 units, Seprod shed 90 cents to finish at $55, in exchanging 15,520 shares. Supreme Ventures declined by $1.25 to settle at $14.75, in transferring 120,086 units, Sygnus Credit Investments fell 50 cents to close at $19, after clearing the market with 23,747 stock units and Wisynco Group gained 47 cents to settle at $15.99, in trading 1,215,482 shares.
In the Main Market preference segment, Productive Business Solutions 9.75% preference share climbed $2 to $106, with 122 units passing through the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.