Juniors trade over 2.6m shares – Thursday
Spurred by good volumes in a number of junior market stocks, the junior market has so far traded over 2.6 million units while the main market had 3 securities trading in volumes over 100,000 units. Honey Bun fresh from a 5 to 1 stock split traded for the first time at $4.30.
Volumes increased for a number of stocks as Honey Bun traded 155,000 units at $4.30, Iron Rock Insurance exchanged 600,000 shares at $3.20, Lasco Distributors lost ground, in trading 762,546 units at $7.90 down from $8 on Wednesday and Lasco Manufacturing had with 1,048,000 shares trading at $4.60. JMMB Group traded 100,000 units at $10, Sagicor Real Estate X Fund had 500,400 shares changing hands at $10 while Supreme Ventures accounted for 219,900 shares at $4.30.
Trading resulted in activity in 27 securities, accounting for a volume of 3,660,342 units as 11 stocks gained and 11 declined. The average number of shares traded amounts to 135,568 units compared to an average of 233,476 units on Wednesday.
After 75 minutes of trading in the early morning session, on Thursday, the all Jamaica Composite Index gained 696.08 points to 175,575.85, the JSE Market Index rose 622.41 points to 158,037.88, the JSE combined index rose by 696.08 points, to 168,568.02 and the junior market index fell 8.59 points to 2,141.91.
Grace trades at $115 on JSE – Tuesday
Grace Kennedy hit $115 with a rise of $4 in trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange in the early morning session on Tuesday with 1,150 shares changing hands, while Pan Jamaican Investment Trust bid is at $27 to buy 526 units with the stock on offer at $30. Honey Bun that trades ex split today has not yet trade with orders to buy still in at $19 and below with the ex split price being $3.80 and the highest price it can trade ta being $4.94 today.
Lasco Distributors had the largest volume traded for the morning of 260,000 units at $7.47 followed by Cable & Wireless with 199,074 shares at $1.38 and Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.50% preference share with 137,702 units at $2.10.
Trading resulted in activity in 25 securities, accounting for a volume of 939,280 units as 6 stocks gained and 11 declined. The average number of shares traded amounts to 37,571 units compared to an average of 67,133 units on Monday.
After 75 minutes of trading in the early morning session, on Tuesday, the all Jamaica Composite Index fell 331.36 points to 173,785.08, the JSE Market Index lost 296.29 points to 156,436.64, the JSE combined index drifted down by 94.44 points, to 167,121.93 and the junior market index rose 17.59 points to 2,145.73.
Shameful, does the JSE care?
1834 Investments, (formerly The Gleaner Company Limited) advised the Jamaica Stock Exchange that the Audited Annual Financial Accounts for March, 2016 will be late and unavailable for publication by May 30, 2016. 1834 anticipates that it should be available for publication on or before June 30, 2016.
This is bad news for investors and bad news for the capital market. Both the Stock Exchange and the Financial Services Commission who overseas such matters should hang their heads in shame for such failure that have deprived investors of getting important financial information on the company’s operations for more than 8 months.
In the past several companies have changed their year end, as recently as late last year Desnoes & Geddes and Access Financial changed their but provided investor with results for all relevant quarters, but the Gleaner Company who changed theirs to March from December did not do so. Regulators of the Stock Exchange gave some clumsy excuse why they could not ask for the December quarter results.
The rules of the Stock Exchange are quite clear, listed companies are required to submit a quarterly interim financial report within 45 days of each quarter. In the case where a company opts to release an audited account within 60 days of the year-end, they can opt in lieu of a quarterly report within 45 days.
The focus is on reporting quarterly, that comes before the audited. What seems to escape the regulators at the Exchange is that investors are kings and queens and they are to one to be foremost in the minds of the regulators to ensure that their investment is protected. One of the main means is timely financial information. If the exchange understood this they would have ensured that the Gleaner Company would be demanded to release the December results within 45 days.
Based on the exchange’s inadequate surveillance we now have a situation where the Gleaner Company (now 1834 Investments) have not reported financial for what looks like 6 months and who knows when it will release the information.
Markets thrive on information and that is the reason why the JSE opted long ago to the publication of quarterlies rather than a six months interim and it has served investors well.