Juniors slipped mildly on Friday

Jetcon traded the most shares on the junior market with 785,615 units at $3 on Frday

Jetcon traded the most shares on the junior market with 785,615 units at $3 on Friday.

The junior market closed on Friday after undergoing a day of subdued activity with 1,443,534 shares valued at $5,505,458 traded. The market index slipped 6.11 points from Thursday’s close, to end at 2,146.80. A total of 12 securities traded, with 3 advancing and 4 declining.
The junior market closed on a soft note with a total of 3 stocks closing with bids higher than their last selling prices and 7 ended with lower offers.
At the end of trading, Caribbean Cream traded 25,000 units and rose 1 cent to end at $4.71, Consolidated Bakeries ended with 51,500 shares changing hands at $1.23, General Accident ended trading with 1,541 shares, to close at $2.60. Honey Bun gained 5 cents to end at $18.25 with 7,290 shares trading, as investors interest in the stock continues with the proposed stock split is expected to be approved later in May. JM Trdng Sht-06-5-16Iron Rock Insurance traded 37,000 shares at $3.40, Jamaican Teas traded 33,174 shares to end at $3.90 with a loss of 1 cent. Jetcon Corporation closed at $3 while 785,615 units traded, KLE Group jumped 37.5 percent in trading 16,550 shares to gain 60 cents and closed at $2.20, Lasco Distributors closed with 185,483 units trading, to close at $7.50, Lasco Financial closed with a loss of 2 cents at $3.47 with 178,184 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing fell 10 cents to close at $4.50 with 121,972 shares trading and tTech ended with 225 shares changing hands, to close at $4.45.

Back to normal for juniors – Thursday

Recently listed Jetcon Corporation traded at a new high of $3 on Thursday .

Recently listed Jetcon Corporation traded at a new high of $3 on Thursday .

The junior market closed on Thursday with much less trading than for the past two trading days as trading fell back to more normal levels. At the close a total of 3,434,205 shares valued at $13,133,950 traded and the market index slipped from Wednesday’s close.
One stock ended at a 52 weeks’ high as 15 securities traded, with 7 advancing and 5 declining. The junior market index fell 16.48 points, to end at 2,152.91. A total of 3 stocks closed with bids higher than their last selling prices and 4 ended with lower offers.
At the end of trading, AMG Packaging closed at $13 with 1,399 units changing hands, CAC 2000 traded 1,227 shares but fell 40 cents, to $6.50. Caribbean Cream traded 278,527 units and rose 10 cents, to end at $4.70, as demand increased and selling eases for the stock, after the company reported strong gains in profit, for the year to February. Caribbean Producers traded 227,325 units a fell by 11 cents to end at $3.90. Consolidated Bakeries fell 15 cents with 5,000 shares changing hands at $1.23, General Accident ended trading with 649,313 shares, to close at $2.70, Honey Bun fell 10 cents to end at $18.20 with 21,190 shares trading, as investors interest in the stock continues with the proposed stock split is expected to be approved later in May. Jamaican Teas traded 2,455 shares to end at $3.91. JM Trdng Sht-05-5-16Jetcon Corporation rose 10 cents and ended at a 52 weeks’ high of $3 while 10,477 units traded as selling pressure eases for this stock with only 4 offers posted at the close of trading. KLE Group had 518,582 shares trading and gained 15 cents to close at $1.60, Lasco Distributors closed with 84,517 units trading, ended with a gain of 5 cents to close at $27.50, Lasco Financial closed at $3.49 with 43,670 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing rose 2 cents to close at $4.60 with 1,578,723 shares trading, Medical Disposables traded 4,000 shares to close 27 cents higher at $3.42 and tTech ended with 7,800 shares changing hands and gained 30 cents to close at $4.45.

LasD big day on Wednesday

The Lasco Distributors traded 16.5m shares on Wednesday.

The Lasco Distributors traded 16.5m shares on Wednesday.

While Eppley stole the show on the junior market on Tuesday with gains of $69.24 and $104 million in traded value, today Lasco Distributor took the spotlight with 16,472,533 units valued at $125,043,477 while it lost 15 cents to close at $7.45. A total of 17,488,687 shares valued at $129,088,773 traded at the close.
There were two 52 weeks’ highs with 15 active securities trading, as 6 advanced and 4 declined and the junior market index rose 10.83 points, to end at 2,169.39. A total of 3 stocks closed with bids higher than their last selling prices and 5 ended with lower offers.
At the end of trading in the market, Caribbean Cream traded 3,000 units and rose 15 cents to end at $4.60, Caribbean Flavours traded 17,000 units at $8.50, Consolidated Bakery gained 3 cents with 76,757 shares changing hands at $1.38, Dolphin Cove gained 1 cent 23,856 to end at $12.51. General Accident ended trading 9,000 shares to close at $2.70, Honey Bun jumped $1.30 to end at a 52 weeks’ high of $18.30 with 7,042 shares trading, JM Trdng Sht-04-5-16ISP Finance gained 6 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ high of $2.80 with 63,000 shares. Jamaican Teas traded 8,000 shares to end at $3.91, Jetcon Corporation ended at $2.90 while 294,854 units traded, Knutsford Express had 2,100 shares trading and gained $2.10 to close at $18.90, Lasco Financial lost 1 cent to close at $3.49 with 218,990 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing lost 1 cent to close at $4.58 with 195,355 shares trading, Medical Disposables traded 62,200 shares to close 27 cents lower at $3.15 and Paramount Trading ended with 35,000 shares changing hands at $10.85.

Another big jump for Eppley on Tuesday

New high for Eppley

New high for Eppley

Eppley jumped again in the early morning session on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, to add $69.24 to the $75.76 gained on Monday as 160,000 units of the stock traded at a new 52 weeks’ high of $650 to record a gain of almost 29 percent in two days.
The trade took place as the company announced that up to 487,703 new ordinary shares priced at $650 each will be made available to ordinary stockholders on the record date for the issue, on Friday 6 May 2016. On Monday Eppley climbed 15 percent for a gain of $75.76 to close at $580.76. At the close, there were two 52 weeks’ highs with 14 active securities trading, as 6 advanced and 4 declined as the junior market index slipped 0.77 points, to end at 2,158.56. A total of 1,253,040 shares valued at $109,112,009 traded. 4 stocks closed with bids higher than their last selling prices and 3 ended with lower offers.
At the end of trading in a market, Caribbean Cream traded 2,450 units and rose 30 cents to end at $4.50, Caribbean Producers had 1,000 shares changing hands at $4.01, General Accident gained 5 cents in trading 3,600 shares to close at $2.70, Honey Bun fell 95 cents to end at $17 with 37,988 shares trading. JM Trdng Sht-03-5-16Jamaican Teas traded 8,900 shares and lost 9 cents to end at $3.91, Jetcon Corporation ended at $2.90 while 608,524 units traded. Key Insurance traded 25,121 shares to end at $2.80, Knutsford Express had 2,900 shares trading unchanged at $16.80. Lasco Distributors gained 10 cents and ended at $7.60 with 130,860 shares trading, Lasco Financial gained 10 cents to close at $3.50 with 120,661 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing lost 1 cent to close at $4.59 with 78,836 shares trading, Medical Disposables traded 1,200 shares to close 22 cents higher at $3.42 and Paramount Trading fell 15 cents to end with 71,000 shares changing hands at $10.85.

Mayberry Q1 profit hardly moved

MILTotal comprehensive income for the March quarter at investment bankers, Mayberry Investments, increased 165 percent to $364 million, compared to $137.6 million in the 2015 quarter. The more investment sensitive number, net profit, was just $94 million compared to $82 million in the corresponding 2015 quarter.
Earnings per share ended at 8 cents, up from 7 cents in 2015, making the stock at $3.40, fully priced based on current market valuation measures. Profit was boosted by $209 million in realised trading gains compared with $53 million in 2015 but suffered from unrealised investment loss of $94 million versus a gain of $12 in 2015.
Income from fees and commissions jumped 204 percent to $38.9 million. Net interest income suffered a reduction of 34 percent or $33.4 million to reach $65 million, dividend income declined from $57 million to $18.6 million and net foreign exchange gains ended at $34 million, down from $40 million.
The decrease in net interest income was as a result of the reduction in the size of the repo portfolio. A general decline in the global bond market due to speculation about US interest rates and changes in the market conditions which impacted the bond prices in the portfolio.
Operating expenses for the period rose 27 percent to $204 million from $161 million for the corresponding period in 2014, “The increase in expense is due to increased costs for consultancy as well as legal and professional services” Gary Peart, Chief Executive Officer stated. Additional provision for credit losses of $7.5 made during the period compared to a write back during 2015 of $5 million contributed to the increase.

Gary Peart, Chief Executive of Mayberry Investments.

Gary Peart, Chief Executive of Mayberry Investments.

The asset tax for 2016 was $31 million compared to $49 million in 2015 due to the reduced company’s total assets. “During the period liabilities were reduced by $4.6 billion as the company increased efforts to reduce the size of our repurchase agreements (repos). Repos at the end of March were $7.8 billion compared to $13.7 billion”, Peart said. The reduction in repo resulted in the asset base shrinking to $21.4 billion from $23.7 billion at March 2015. Growth in the investment portfolio and investments in associated companies supported by increased borrowing helped in preventing a larger decline. Total liabilities fell to $14.8 billion from $19.4 billion as of March 2015.
The group made investments in four associated companies since July 2015, making Lasco Financial Services, Blue Power Group, Caribbean Producers and Iron Rock Insurance Company associates and contributed $28 million in profit, there was no income from associates in the 2015 period.
At the end of the period stockholders’ equity was $6.6 billion, an increase of $2.3 billion over the corresponding period in 2015. Net book value ended at $5.50 per share and big premium to the last traded price of $3.40 on the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

Eppley jumps $76 on Monday

Eppley jumps sharply to close at a new high of $580.76

Eppley jumps sharply to close at a new high of $580.76

Trading on the junior market was dominated by Eppley with a 15 percent jump in the price, resulting in a gain of $75.76 to close at $580.76 for a new 52 weeks’ high with 100 shares changing hands. The rise in Eppley and recovery of $1.05 in the price of Lasco Manufacturing resulted in the junior market index rising a sharp 94.48 points, to end at 2,159.33.
At the close, there were two 52 weeks’ highs with 14 active securities trading, with 8 advancing and 3 declining. Volume traded is just 534,047 shares valued at $3,394,975, while 4 stocks closed with bids higher than the last selling prices and 3 ended with lower offers.
At the end of trading in a market, Caribbean Cream traded 19,811 units and fell 15 cents to end at $4.20, Caribbean Flavours had 104,812 shares changing hands at $8.50, Consolidated Bakeries gained 10 cents in trading 40,000 shares to close at $1.35, Dolphin Cove had 16,144 shares changing hands at $12.50. Honey Bun rose 75 cents to end at a 52 weeks’ high of $17.95 with 500 shares trading. JM Trdng Sht-02-5-16Iron Rock Insurance traded at $3.40 at the close while 4,000 shares changed hands, with a gain of 5 cents, Jamaican Teas traded 1,817 shares and gained 1 cent to end at $4, Jetcon Corporation ended at $2.90 while 66,153 units traded. Key Insurance traded 5,300 shares but gained 30 cents to end at $2.80, Lasco Distributors fell 10 cents and ended at $7.50 with 213,679 shares trading, Lasco Financial gained 25 cents to close at $3.40 with 25,585 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing rose $1.05 to close at $4.60 with 27,458 shares trading and tTech ended with 8,688 units changing hands to end with a loss of 30 cents at $4.15.

3 Lascos dominate on Friday

The Lasco companies traded the most shares on Friday.

The Lasco companies traded the most shares on Friday.

Trading on the junior market saw more stocks rising than declining, but a fall of $1.30 in the price of Lasco Manufacturing resulted in the junior market index falling by 38.55 points to end at 2,064.85 as the three Lasco listed companies accounted for the bulk of the volume for the day. .
There were 12 active securities trading, with 8 advancing and 3 declining. At the close, 9 stocks closed with bids higher than the last selling prices and 3 ended with lower offers. Volume traded is 2,216,522 shares valued at $11,878,080.
At the end of trading in a market, AMG Packaging traded 16,841 shares at $13, Caribbean Cream traded 68,200 units to gain 15 cents and end at $4.35, Honey Bun rose 20 cents to end at $17.20 with 305 shares trading. Iron Rock Insurance traded at $3.35 at the close while 8,800 shares changed hands, with a gain of 5 cents,JM Trdng Sht 29-4-16 Jamaican Teas traded 25,571 shares and fell 1 cent to end at $3.99, Jetcon Corporation gained 20 cents to end at $2.90 while only 500 units traded. Knutsford Express traded 9,600 shares but fell $2.10 to $16.80, Lasco Distributors rose 35 cents and ended at $7.60 with 998,711 shares trading, Lasco Financial gained 15 cents to close at $3.15 with 569,195 shares changing hands. Lasco Manufacturing fell $1.30 to close at $3.55 with 488,299 shares trading, Medical Disposables rose by 10 cents in trading 30,000 shares to close at $3.20 and tTech ended with 500 units changing hands to end with a gain of 27 cents at $4.45.

Mayberry 17m trade – Friday

Mayberry Investments dominated trading with 17,605,039 shares but the price declined to $3 in JSE intra 29-04-16the mid-morning session on the Jamaica Stock Exchange. Other trades of import are Lasco Distributors with 684,917 units at $7.20 and Lasco Financial Services 422,346 units at $3.
After 90 minutes of trading, on Friday, the average volume traded amounts to 657,664 units per active stock, compared to an average of 149,862 units traded in the mid-morning session on Thursday. A total of 30 securities accounting for 19,729,923 shares changed hands as 7 stocks gained and 11 declined.
The market saw the all Jamaica Composite Index gained 623.18 points to 166,663.13, the JSE Market Index rose 557.22 points to 150,068.48, the JSE combined index ended with a rise of 116.53 points to 160,380.11 and the junior market index declined 39.14 points to 2,064.26.

Trading falls for juniors – Thursday

Lasco Financial traded the largest volume of 1,397,376 units on Thursday.

Lasco Financial traded the largest volume of 1,397,376 units on Thursday.

Trading on the junior market was more sedate than on Wednesday, with just over half the numbers of securities trading compared to 20 yesterday. At the close, the junior market index eased just 6.50 points to end at 2,103.40. There were 11 active securities trading, with 8 advancing and 2 declining. .
At the close, 7 stocks closed with bids higher than the last selling prices and 3 ended with lower offers. Volume traded is 3,938,670 shares valued at $14,970,710.
At the end of trading in a market, AMG Packaging traded 1,848 shares at $13, Caribbean Cream traded 133,566 units to gain 20 cents and end at $4.20, Consolidated Bakeries rose 8 cents in trading 18,782 shares to close at $1.25, Honey Bun rose $1.20 to end at $17 with 4,000 shares trading. JM Trdng Sht 28-4-16Iron Rock Insurance traded at $3.30 while 9,786 shares changed hands with a gain of 20 cents, ISP Finance had 50,000 shares changing hands and rose 29 cents to close at $2.74, Jamaican Teas traded 5,000 shares and gained 30 cents to end at $4, Jetcon Corporation fell 15 cents to end at $2.70 while 880, 327 units traded. Lasco Distributors rose 5 cents and ended at $7.25 with 272,349 shares trading. Lasco Financial lost 10 cents to close at $3 with 1,397,376 shares changing hands, Lasco Manufacturing rose 15 cents to close at $4.85 with 1,213,474 shares trading and tTech ended with 2,162 units changing hands to end with a gain of 3 cents at $4.18.

Juniors climb sharply – Wednesday

Lasco Financial traded the most shares on the junior market on Wednesday.

Lasco Financial traded the most shares on the junior market on Wednesday.

Trading on the junior market resulted in more stocks rising exceeding declining ones by a wide margin and ended with the index rising 42.37 points to end at 2,109.90 on Wednesday. There were 20 active securities in the junior market with 10 advancing and 4 declining. .
At the close, 2 stocks closed with bids higher than the last selling prices and 2 ended with lower offers. Volume traded is 7,092,876 shares valued at $25,938,952.
At the end of trading in a market, Access Financial Services closed at $16.50 with 12,000 units changing hands, AMG Packaging traded 11,000 shares at $13, Cargo Handlers closed at $45, with 525 shares changing hands, Caribbean Cream traded 92,870 units, but recovered the 17 cents it lost on Tuesday to end at $4. Caribbean Producers gained 11 cents to end at $4.01 while trading 475,000 units. Consolidated Bakeries rose 7 cents in trading 1,000,000 shares to close at $1.17. C2W Music gained 3 cents while trading 106,324 units to end at 35 cents, Dolphin Cove traded 250 shares with a loss of 50 cents at $12.50, General Accidents closed at $2.65 with 147,688 shares changing hands, Honey Bun lost 20 cents to end at $15.80 with 206,720 shares trading. Iron Rock Insurance traded at $3.10 while 63,000 shares change hands,JM Trdng Sht 27-4-16 ISP Finance had 50,000 shares changing hands and rose 29 cents to close at $2.74, Jamaican Teas traded 397,510 shares and gained 20 cents to end at $3.70, Jetcon Corporation climbed 35 cents to end at $2.85 while 352,125 units traded. KLE Group traded 1,000,000 shares with a rise of 5 cents to $1.45, Lasco Distributors gained 68 cents and ended at $7.20 with 265,511 trading. Lasco Financial closed at $3.10 with 1,493,865 shares changing hands but rose 10 cents, Lasco Manufacturing fell by 5 cents to close at $4.70 with 597,108 shares trading, Derrimon Trading preference share ended with 21,500 units changing hands to end with a loss of 2 cents at $2.12 and Eppley 10% reference share traded 799,880 units at $6.10.