Trading volume surged 251 percent with a 198 percent jump in the value over Friday’s levels as NCB Financial accounted for $11 million of the total value of stocks traded and Guardian Holdings $4.6 million, on a day when 20 securities traded, up from 18 on Friday, with five rising, two declining.
At the close, the Composite Index rose 1.63 points to 1,379.90, the All T&T Index added 1.67 points to end at 1,875.69 and the Cross-listed index added 0.37 points to end at 119.03.
A total of 1,948,761 shares traded for $21,671,147, up from 555,090 units at $7,262,767 on Friday.
Trading averaged 97,438 units at $1,083,55, up from 30,838 shares at $403,487 on Friday. April averaged 25,935 units at $406,593.
The Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows one stock ending with a higher bid than the last selling price and three with lower offers.
At the close, Agostini’s traded 2,000 shares at $24.40, Angostura Holdings settled at $15 in switching ownership of 1,222 shares, Ansa Mcal remained at $56.75 while exchanging 7,417 units, Clico Investment Fund ended at $25.50 in exchanging 101,147 units, First Citizens Bank closed at $50 in exchanging 9,404 units. FirstCaribbean International Bank added 4 cents to close at $6.10 with 2933,587 units crossing the market, Grace Kennedy added 1 cent to end at $5.24, after 48,260 shares changed hands, Guardian Holdings gained 51 cents to close at a 52 weeks’ high of $33.51 with 137,551 shares crossing the exchange. JMMB Group rose 7 cents to $1.81 after exchanging 8 stock units, L.J Williams B share traded 47,061 stock units at $1.35, Massy Holdings stayed at $69.76 after exchanging 1,189 shares. NCB Financial Group close at $8.50 in an exchange of 1,303,500 units, National Enterprises traded 20,281 stock units at $3 after rising 4 cents, National Flour exchanged 218,348 units at $2.30, Republic Financial Holdings closed at $135 after trading 48 stock units, Scotiabank closed at $57, with 16,069 stock units clearing the market, Trinidad & Tobago NGL lost $1 to close at $17.50 after trading 26,322 stock units. Trinidad Cement ended at $3.30, with an exchange of 39 stock units, Unilever Caribbean closed at $16.33 after exchanging 8,297 stocks and West Indian Tobacco lost 1 cent to end at $32.50 after trading 305 shares.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
Trinis missing the salient points
Another Trinidad company (Massy Holdings) is set to list on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on the basis that the sophistication and growth opportunities are evident in the Jamaican securities market that has become increasingly more dynamic over the past few years.
They may be right about the Jamaican capital market, but they are missing the real issues. The stock prices of listed companies in T&T Stock Exchange have been priced out of the reach of the average Trinidadians and the directors don’t seem to understand that or worse seem to care about the smaller investors. Guardian Holdings with 232,024,923 million shares issued and Massy with nearly 98 million shares will just not have the liquidity to trade frequently in good volumes in either the Trinidad or Jamaican market. Unfortunately, those are not the only companies in that market that are so affected. The companies need to have the issued number of shares increased. for decent trading in the Jamaican market around two to three billion issued shares will be an appropriate level.
The other factor is the need to put the companies on a growth path for profits that investors can have confidence in acquiring and holding the shares. The weakness in this area of profitability, is not the sole purview of the companies, as the government has a role to play in this.
Guardian Holdings hit 52 weeks high on TTSE.
The evidence is crystal clear, investors love stock splits and they help move stock prices as investors buy up shares they previously ignore for being overpriced. This has been without a doubt the clear case in the Jamaican market. For years PanJam Investments directors resisted recommending to shareholders the splitting of the company’s stocks but relented a few years ago, with the stock price that was stagnant for years coming to life and rewarded shareholders with much higher value afterward. It is therefore difficult to understand why directors, with the evidence so clear, want to have elevated stock prices and limited liquidity of their stock. Last year Apple and Tesla sand split their stocks to much investors acclaim, just this week Nvidia Corporation in the USA, with the price jumping after announcing a four for one split.