Trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange US dollar market ended on Wednesday, with the volume of stocks changing hands declining 75 percent, valued 85 percent lower than on Tuesday, resulting from trading in seven securities, compared to four on Tuesday with one rising, two declining and four ending unchanged.
A total of 73,498 shares were traded for US$5,221 compared to 296,100 units at US$34,738 on Tuesday.
Trading averaged 10,500 units at US$746, versus 74,025 shares at US$8,685 on Tuesday compared to trading in—October with an average of 47,977 units for US$4,392.
The US Denominated Equities Index advanced 3.00 points to finish at 229.02.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 8.8. The PE ratio is calculated based on the last traded price divided by projected earnings done by ICInsider.com for companies with their financial year 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 one with a lower offer.
At the close, First Rock Real Estate USD share ended at 4.37 US cents, with 640 units crossing the market, Margaritaville remained at 12.7 US cents after trading 1,411 stocks, 
Proven Investments ended at 15.5 US cents closed with an exchange of 1,372 shares. Sterling Investments advanced 0.26 of a cent in closing at 1.96 US cents in an exchange of 50,816 stocks, Sygnus Credit Investments declined 0.12 of a cent to close at 8.56 US cents with investors transferring 162 shares and Transjamaican Highway remained at 1.65 US cents after exchanging 17,297 units.
In the preference segment, JMMB Group 5.75% shed 5 cents in closing at US$1.95 after 1,800 stocks passed through the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trading falls but JSE USD Market rises
Drop In JSE USD Market
Trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange US dollar market ended on Monday, with the volume of stocks changing hands rising 315 percent but with a 54 percent lower value than on Friday, resulting in the trading of nine securities, compared to six on Friday with four rising, three declining and two ending unchanged.
Overall, 131,600 shares were traded, for a mere US$3,492 compared to 31,673 units at US$7,572 on Friday.
Trading averaged 14,622 units at US$388, versus 5,279 shares at US$1,262 on Friday, with a month to date average of 47,163 shares at US$4,258 compared with 49,625 units at US$4,551 on the previous trading day. Trading in September ended with an average of 73,281 units for US$5,102.
The US Denominated Equities Index lost 12.69 points to settle at 213.33, down 8.8 percent for the year to date.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 8.5. The PE ratio is computed based on the last traded price divided by projected earnings done by ICInsider.com for companies with their financial year 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 one with a lower offer.
At the close, First Rock Real Estate USD share remained at 4.37 US cents after an exchange of 1,000 stocks, Margaritaville gained 1.68 cents to close at 12.7 US cents, with one unit crossing the market, Productive Business Solutions dropped 15 cents to close at US$1.40 in an exchange of 51 shares. 
Proven Investments popped 0.1 of a cent in closing at 14.6 US cents, with 4,400 stock units crossing the market, Sterling Investments increased 0.1 of a cent to end at 1.7 US cents after an exchange of 710 shares and Transjamaican Highway lost 0.11 of one cent in closing at 1.54 US cents, with 125,038 units changing hands.
In the preference segment, JMMB Group 5.5% skidded 33.9 cents to US$1.65 after 250 stocks passed through the market, JMMB Group 5.75% ended at US$1.74 with investors transferring 140 stock units and Productive Business Solutions 9.25% preference share climbed 84 cents to close at US$12.40 in switching ownership of 10 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
More changes for ICTOP10
During the past week, the ICTOP10 Main Market stocks closed, with losing stocks dominating and rising stocks outnumbering declining ones in the Junior Market, following gains in both market indices. During the week, the JSE Main Market Index recovered all of the 3,385 points drop of the previous week by adding 3,900 points, but the All Jamaica Composite Index rose by 600 points and the Junior Market rose a mere 31 points.
The above set the stage for ICTOP10 Junior Market stocks to post five rising stocks to two that declined, while the ICTOP10 Main Market recorded five modest gains and four losses.
Price movements in the market resulted in two new TOP10 listings for the Junior Market and one for the Main Market. Lasco Manufacturing and Consolidated Bakeries dropped out of the Junior Market listing and Caribbean Cement fell out of the Main Market, resulting from a small price appreciation and re-evaluation of earnings per share following the release of nine months results, with ICInsider.com projected earnings now at $7. However, the stock still has the potential to go higher, with the current PE at just 7 times 2023 earnings compared to an average of 12 for the market.
Returning to the TOP 10 are Junior Market listed Paramount Trading and AMG Packaging. In contrast, Scotia Group returns to the TOP 10 Main Market listing, with the price dropping from $34.45 at the end of the previous week to $33.55 this past week. AMG returns, following the release of the full year’s results, show major improvement in direct operating cost with a solid increase in gross profit margin in the August quarter, which augurs well for earnings for the new fiscal year starting September, accordingly, I
CInsider.com upgraded earnings to $0.40 per share for the current year and that pushed the stock to 5th place on the TOP 10 list. Paramount Trading returns with a depressed price and gains by the two stocks dropping out of the listing.
Everything Fresh led the Junior Market listing with a rise of 14 percent to $1.60, followed by Lasco Manufacturing with a 10 percent climb and Elite Diagnostic with 6 percent to $1.88. Just two stocks fell with losses of just one and three percent. The Main Market closed the week with Caribbean Producers rising 4 percent to $9.50. Margaritaville fell 14 percent to $14.05, Key Insurance dropped six percent to $2.50 and General Accident with a four percent decline to $5.45.
The average PE for the JSE Main Market ICTOP 10 stands at 4.7, well below the market average of 12.1. The Main Market ICTOP10 is projected to gain an average of 359 percent by May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
An indication of where stock prices could be by May 2024 can be seen from stocks with the highest values in the Main and Junior Markets.
In the Main Market ICTOP 10, a total of 15 of the most highly valued stocks representing 31 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 109, with an average of 30 and 19 excluding the highest PE ratios, and a PE of 23 for the top half and 16 excluding the stocks with overweight valuations.
The PE of the Junior Market TOP10 sits at 5.9, just over half of the market, with an average of 10.8. There are 11 stocks, or 23 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 25, averaging 18.6, well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 15, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently, with the market projected to rise by 244 percent by May 2024.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners. Accordingly, the list includes some of the best companies in the market, but this is only sometimes so. 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 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.
Disappointing early Q3 results
Profits are the primary driver of stock prices. The early release of third quarter results for 2023 for some listed companies has been less than inspiring, with the majority reporting lower revenues and profits for the third quarter and, in some cases, reduced revenues and profits for the year to date. That is not the results the market needs to lift a sagging market weighted down by some poor profit results for the year and tight monetary policy being pursued by Jamaica’s Central Bank.
Margaritaville, located in the Turks & Caicos Islands
So far, Companies reporting include AMG Packaging, Caribbean Cream with it trading brand Kremi, Express Catering, Image Plus Consultants, Knutsford Express, Margaritaville, Mayberry Investments, Paramount Trading and Portland JSX Fund.
AMG Packaging reported a slight drop in full year earnings to August of $94 million. The 2023 performance is better than that of 2022, with the current year’s figures including a one-off charge and vastly increased taxation than in the previous year.
Profit after tax is down from $105 million in the previous year, but this is after taxation that climbed from $18 million to $39 million in the current year. Revenues in the current year come out at $1 billion, up from $996 million in the prior year. For the quarter, revenues fell to $230 million from $257 million, with profits after tax of $19 million, down from $25 million in the previous year. The 2023 result was dragged down by a one off charge relating to payroll tax credits that were not allowed in prior years, amounting to $11 million, had this not been the case, profits would have been higher than for the previous year. Additionally, the taxation charge for the year was $11 million versus just $5 million in the prior year’s fourth quarter.
Caribbean Cream reported revenues of $646 million for the 2023 August quarter versus $645 million in 2022, with the year to date revenues slipping into $1.25 billion from $1.257 billion in 2022. Profit fell to $3.6 million in the August quarter, down from $7 million in 2022, but is up to $10 million for the six months from $8.5 million in 2022.
Revenues and profits rebounded strongly at Express Catering in the first quarter to August 2023 versus 2022. Net profit for the quarter ended at US$843,114 for EPS of 0.051 US cents, up 29 percent from a profit of US$652,841, with EPS of 0.040 US cents in the similar period in 2022 as revenues climbed 30 percent to US$5.4 million from US$4.9 million in 2022 aided by a strong rebound in tourism traffic passing through the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, as well as the opening of new restaurants in the airport.
Image Plus reported sharply lower second quarter results, a 40 percent drop in earnings from $64 million before tax in 2022 to just $39 million for the second quarter as revenues declined by 7 percent to $254 million from $274 million in 2022 but remained flat for the half year at $554 million, resulting in pretax profit falling 33 percent from $153 million down to $103 million. The company indicated that revenues decreased due to machine breakdown.
Revenues at Knutsford Express jumped 18.5 percent for the first quarter ending August to $492 million from $415 million in the 2022 first quarter. The revenue improvement translated to slight growth in profit as cost rose nearly 26 percent to $380 million from $303 million. The company stated that it increased its workforce to manage growth. Before tax, profit increased marginally to $86 million from $84 million in the prior year.
Margaritaville was one company delivering improved revenues and profit for the 2023 first quarter, primarily reflecting improvement in tourism traffic in the Caribbean region. The company generated revenues of US$1.8 million in the August 2023 quarter, up solidly from US$1.42 million in the prior year and delivered gross profit of $1.33 billion this year versus US$1.03 million. Net profit surged to US$230,000 for the year to date against just US$94,000 in 2022.
Mayberry Investments released nine months’ results with a $985 million loss for the third quarter and $693 million loss for the nine months after reporting significant investment losses of around $2 billion in both periods, but shareholders’ equity remains strong at $15.75 billion.
Paramount
Paramount Trading reported lower revenues and profits in the first quarter ending August, following what the company states is the conclusion of the best major six month contract to supply admixture to the construction sector. Revenues declined by 28 percent to $426 million from $595 million the year before and profits fell by 32 percent to $65 million from $97 million the previous year.
Portland JSX Fund reported a worsened loss of US$1,457,327 for the quarter to August this year, up from US$416,643 in the similar quarter in 2022 and a loss of US$8.71 million versus a profit of US$376,681 profit for the six months to August 2022.
The results reflect net fair value losses on investments of US$1.3 million in the quarter and US$8.3 million for the half year.
85% gainer jumps ICTOP10
The Junior Market had an 85 percent winner during the past week, with only three stocks recording notable price changes in a market that remained fairly stable in the holiday-shortened week, with a slippage of only a few points. Price movements in the Main Market were moderate, with the highest being 5 percent at the end of the week, in which the JSE Index dropped more than 3,000 points, with the All Jamaica composite Index slipping just 90 points.
Edufocal was the star performer of the week with a big 85 percent surge in price to close at $2.50, following the company reporting that the board of directors is to meet on October 27 to discuss a possible rights issue and a stock split. Elite Diagnostic rose 13 percent to $1.77 and Everything Fresh dropped 11 percent to $1.40. The Main Market closed the week with JMMB Group falling 5 percent to $27.10, being the only stock with a notable change.
Market activity resulted in two new additions to the Junior Market ICTOP10 and one to the Main Market. Returning to the Junior Market TOP 10 are Lasco Financial Services and Lasco Manufacturing, replacing Caribbean Cream and Edufocal. Full year earnings for the former were downgraded to 55 cents per share following the release of second quarter results, which showed flat revenues for the August quarter and half year compared with 2022 and lower profit for the second quarter, with increased profit for the six months compared to 2022. Lasco Financial Services reported disappointing results for the first quarter of the new fiscal year to June. 
The company did not benefit as much from interest income as would be expected and had adequate funds on hand to expand the loan portfolio, development management indicated they would be pursuing for the rest of the year. Significant expansion of loans could radically transform both revenues and profit for the year. The extent of this improvement is unclear currently, however, the potential suggests that this is a stock to watch going forward as it could surprise to the upside. Lasco Manufacturing is, without question, a stock that is seriously undervalued, but investors pushed the price down during the week. This is clearly one for the future and one that investors should see continuous improvement in stock price over the next 12 months as the company rolls out improved profits in the quarters to come.
In the Main Market, Caribbean Producers returned to the ICTOP10 and replaced Scotia Group that was just squeezed out of the TOP10. CPJ performed well during the fiscal year ending June. The performance was obscured by a onetime charge related to past GCT claims that were booked in the past year, but for this charge, results would have been vastly better than reported, but investors may have been turned off by the results. 
The expectation is for profitability to improve during the current fiscal year ending in June 2024. The stock is clearly undervalued and has much room for growth over the next 12 months and beyond. Scotia Group, although out of the TOP10, reported a 74 percent in profit for the nine months to July and is terribly undervalued. Investors should be accumulated in the stock with the expectation for gradual appreciation, especially when the full year results are released with earnings expected to top $5.50 for the year to October 2023.
The average PE for the JSE Main Market ICTOP 10 stands at 5, well below the market average of 12. The Main Market ICTOP10 is projected to gain an average of 328 percent by May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
A total of 15 of the most highly valued stocks representing 31 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 105, with an average of 29 and 20 excluding the highest PE ratios, and a PE of 22 for the top half and 16 excluding the stocks with overweight valuations.
The PE of the Junior Market TOP10 sits at 6, just over half of the market at 10.7. There are 9 stocks or 19 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 26, averaging 19 that are well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 14, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently, with the market projected to rise by 261 percent by May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners, accordingly, the list includes some of the best companies in the market, but this is not always so. 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.
JSE USD Market drops 10% on Tuesday
The US Denominated Equities Index dropped nearly 10 percent after skidding 10.61 points on Tuesday to 232.98 and wiping all the gains recorded for the year to date after trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange US dollar market ended, with the volume of stocks changing hands plunging 62 percent with the value 29 percent lower than on Friday, resulting in the trading of seven securities, similar to Friday and ended with prices of just two rising, five declining.
A total of 34,722 shares were traded for US$2,213 compared with 91,370 units at US$3,137 on Friday.
Trading averaged 4,960 units at US$316 compared with 13,053 shares at US$448 on Friday, with a month to date average of 46,276 shares at US$1,365 compared with 50,795 units at US$1,480 on the previous trading day, well below trading in September that ended with an average of 73,281 units for US$5,102.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 8.5. The PE ratio is computed based on the last traded price divided by projected earnings done by ICInsider.com for companies with their financial year 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 one with a lower offer.
At the close, First Rock Real Estate USD share climbed 0.37 of a cent to close at 4.87 US cents in an exchange of 2,866 shares, Margaritaville lost 1.98 cents to end at 11.02 US cents, with trading of 839 units, 
Productive Business Solutions declined 20 cents in closing at US$1.60 after trading 220 stock units. Proven Investments popped 0.04 of a cent to 14.69 US cents with investors transferring 373 stocks, Sterling Investments dipped 0.29 of a cent to 1.5 US cents after a transfer of 2,000 units and Transjamaican Highway skidded 0.04 of a cent to 1.68 US cents with a transfer of 27,893 shares.
In the preference segment, JMMB Group 5.75% fell 17 cents in closing at US$2 in switching ownership of 531 stock units.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Four new ICTOP10 listings
The Junior Market rose modestly during the past week while the Main Market slipped marginally to close out the week, resulting in ICTOP10 stocks delivering mixed results with the Junior Market recording some solid price increases and just three declines while the ICTOP10 Main Market stocks had just one price decline with three stocks recording notable price increases.
Market activity resulted in three new additions to the Junior Market ICTOP10 and one in the Main Market. Returning to the Junior Market TOP10 are Consolidated Bakeries, Dolphin Cove and Lasco Distributors replacing Image Plus, Lasco Financial Services and Paramount Trading with the latter reporting lower profits and revenues in the first quarter ended August and Image Plus reporting sharply lower second quarter and half year results that pushed projected earnings for the year to 27 cents per share. In the Main Market, Caribbean Producers dropped out of the ICTOP10 and is replaced by Caribbean Cement.
The Main Market closed the week with Key Insurance jumping 16 percent to $2.68, Scotia Group rising 5 percent to $33.60 and Caribbean Producers popping 4 percent to close at $10.67.
The Junior Market produced gains of 17 percent for Paramount Trading which closed up $1.76 and 16 percent of four Caribbean Cream at $4.65 followed by Lasco Financial Services up 7 percent to $2.06, declining was Elite Diagnostic down 15 percent to $1.57 and five percent for Caribbean Assurance Brokers to close at $3.03.
The average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 stands at 5.1, well below the market average of 12.2. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to gain an average of 328 percent, by May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
A total of 14 of the most highly valued stocks representing 29 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 108, with an average of 30 and 20 excluding the highest PE ratios, and a PE of 22 for the top half and 16 excluding the stocks with overweight valuations.
The PE of the Junior Market TOP10 sits at 5.7, half of the market at 10.8. There are 11 stocks or 23 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 25, averaging 19 that are well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 15, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently, with the market projected to rise by 261 percent by May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of 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 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.
JSE USD trading slips on Tuesday
Trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange US dollar market ended on Tuesday, with the volume of stocks changing hands declining 78 percent valued 63 percent lower than on Monday, resulting in trading of five securities, compared to six on Monday with one rising, four declining.
Trading concluded with an exchange of 129,260 shares at US$4,240 down from 576,968 units at US$11,519 on Monday.
Trading averaged 25,852 units for US$848, down from 96,161 shares at US$1,920 on Monday, with a month to date average of 49,227 shares at US$1,322 compared to 52,224 units at US$1,382 on the previous day. September ended with an average of 73,281 units for US$5,102.
The US Denominated Equities Index dropped 0.85 points to finish at 243.00.
The PE Ratio, a measure used in computing appropriate stock values, averages 8.7. The PE ratio is computed based on the last traded price divided by projected earnings done by ICInsider.com for companies with their financial year 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 none with a lower offer.
At close of trading, Margaritaville climbed 2.84 cents to 12.35 US cents with investors trading just one share, Sterling Investments dropped 0.04 of a cent to 1.79 US cents with 578 units clearing the market, Sygnus Credit Investments lost 0.14 of a cent in closing at 8.81 US cents with investors trading 12,478 units and Transjamaican Highway dipped 0.01 of a cent and ended at 1.7 US cents in switching ownership of 116,103 stocks.
In the preference segment, Productive Business Solutions 9.25% preference share shed 50 cents to close at US$11.50 after 100 stock units crossed the market.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
New ICTOP10 listings
Stocks pulled back this past week from the month end Induced rally of the prior week on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, resulting in two new additions to the ICTOP10 stock, with mostly declining stocks dominating the ICTOP10.
Coming into the Junior Market TOP10 are Paramount Trading, with the price dropping to an appealing $1.50 and Everything Fresh dipping to $1.55. Leaving the Junior Market TOP 10 are Dolphin Cove and Lasco Distributors with modest price changes for the week. There are no changes to the Main Market TOP10.
The Main Market closed the week with Caribbean Producers rising 4 percent to close at $10.24, but Guardian Holdings dropped 13 percent to close the week at $440, followed by a 6 percent fall in Key Insurance and Scotia Group to $2.31 and $32 respectively.
There were no gains of worth in the Junior Market but One on One Educational Services fell 12 percent to $1.01, Caribbean Assurance Brokers fell 6 percent to $3.19 and Caribbean Cream slipped 4 percent to $4.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 stands at 4.9, well below the market average of 12.2. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to gain an average of 344 percent, by May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
A total of 15 of the most highly valued stocks representing 23 percent of the Main Market are priced at a PE of 15 to 108, with an average of 32 and 21 excluding the highest PE ratios, and a PE of 23 for the top half and 16 excluding the stocks with overweight valuations.
The PE of the Junior Market Top 10 sits at 5.7 just half of the market at 10.9. There are 11 stocks or 23 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 37, averaging 20 that are well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 15, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently and is projected to rise by 268 percent by May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of likely gains for ICTOP10 stocks.
ICTOP10 focuses on likely yearly winners. The lists include 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.
4 changes to ICTOP10 stocks
In a week with four changes to the ICTOP10 stock listings, the select list of stocks racked up some impressive gains to close out the past week and the ninth month of the year, following solid gains during the week for the Jamaica Stock Exchange Junior and the Main Market. Junior Market rose more than 150 points and rose above the August close, while the Main Market index jumped 14,765 points for the week and the All Jamaica Index is up 12,156 points with both up modestly over the August close.
Top performing stock in the past week.
Coming into the Junior Market TOP10 are Lasco Financial, Dolphin Cove and Lasco Distributors, as Everything Fresh, General Accident and iCreate dropped out. General Accident replaced Caribbean Cement that fell out of the Main Market TOP10.
The Main Market closed the week with Caribbean Cement jumping 16 percent to close at $56.80, Guardian Holdings ran up 14 percent to close the week at $506.60, followed by a 10 percent increase in Jamaica Broilers to $34 and a 6 percent rise in JMMB Group to $29, all other price changes were 4 percent or less.
The Junior Market saw Everything Fresh jumping 28 percent to $1.75, followed by Caribbean Assurance Brokers leaping 20 percent to $3.38 as supply of the stock below this price has dried up and One-On-One Educational Services and General Accident are up a notable 15 percent to $1.15 and $6 respectively and finally, Image Plus rose 7 percent to $2.17.
Caribbean Producers reported full year earnings to June of J$0.90 per share, excluding one off item. ICInsider.com projects earnings of $1.70 for the current year, pushing the stock jumps to 6th position in the top 10 to number 7 on the list.
At the end of the week, the average PE for the JSE Main Market TOP 10 is 4.9, well below the market average of 12.4. The Main Market TOP10 is projected to gain an average of 330 percent, by May 2024, based on 2023 forecasted earnings.
A total of 15 of the most highly valued stocks representing 23 percent of the Main Market are priced with a PE of 15 to 109, with an average of 29 and 19 excluding the highest PE ratios, with a PE of 23 for the top half and 16 excluding the stocks with the over weighted valuations.
The PE of the Junior Market Top 10 sits at 5.7 just half of the market at 11.2. There are 13 stocks or 27 percent of the market, with PEs from 15 to 28, averaging 19 that are well above the market’s average. The top half of the market has an average PE of 15, possibly the lowest fair value for Junior Market stocks currently and is projected to rise by 255 percent down from 288 percent last week by May 2024.
The divergence between the average PE of the Main and Junior Markets and the overall market valuation are important indicators of the level of 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 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.