National Commercial Bank stock price hit a new 52 weeks high of $20 in trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Monday with 1,066,318 shares changing hands. One million units of the stock was bought and sold by Stockbroker, Sagicor Investments at $20 each.
After three consecutive days of declining stocks beating out advancing ones last week, breaking the trend that was in place since the start of the year, with no trading day closing with number of declining stocks being more than advancing ones, activity on the exchange returned to the trend prior to the days of decline on Monday. At the close on Monday, the prices of 10 stocks gained, 6 declined as 23 securities changed hands, ending in 4,912,390 units trading, valued at $30,624,883 in all market segments. The positive advance, decline ratio did not prevent large declines in the main market indices as Carreras gave back most of the gain it enjoyed on Friday.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index lost 765.65 points to 77,062.39 , the JSE All Jamaican Composite index declined 856.03 points to close at 84,877.64 and the JSE combined index declined by 716.44 points to close at 78,938.30.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and stocks with offers that were lower.
Gains| Stocks gaining with last traded prices at the end of trading in the main market are, Cable & Wireless closing with 715,292 units changing hands, with a gain of 1 cent at 51 cents. Gleaner had 3,000 shares changing hands to close 2 cents up, at 82 cents, Grace Kennedy closed with 17,480 shares trading with a gain of 5 cents at $63, Jamaica Broilers ending with 2,000 units changing hands to close with 1 cents gain at $4.01. Jamaica Money Market Brokers finished with 4,000 ordinary shares with the price gaining 3 cents to $6.60, Jamaica Stock Exchange with 48,688 units changing hands to close with a gain of 10 cents at $2.10, National Commercial Bank closed at a new 52 weeks high with 1,066,318 shares changing hands and gained of 69 cents at $20. Proven Investments ended with 35,970 units changing hands to close 0.02 cent higher at 21.02 US cents, new all-time high and Sagicor Group closed with 20,820 shares trading with a gain of 5 cents at $10.20.
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in the last traded prices are, Berger Paints closed with 1,439 units trading at $1.55, Desnoes & Geddes concluding trading with 1,100 shares changing hands at $4.80, Mayberry Investments ended with 1,381,873 units trading to end at $2 and Scotia Group in trading 30,195 units at $20.50.
Declines| The last traded prices of stocks with losses at the end of trading in the main market are, the price of Carreras slipped $1.88 to closed with 1,650 units trading as at $37.62 and Radio Jamaica ended with 1,986 shares trading lower by 20 cent to $1.10.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.25% preference share closed with 200 units being active, with the price rising 1 cents to $2.50, Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.50% finished with 1,502,471 units trading at $2 and Proven Investments 8% preference share traded 1,555 units traded at $5.
10 JSE stocks rose 6 declined Monday
JPS share jumps $119
In Monday’s activity on the Jamaica Stock Exchange, the price of Jamaica Public Services 9.5% Preference shares jumped by $118.90 to end at $1,125 for a new all-time high as investors traded the stock for $236,250,000. Activity in the overall market resulted in the prices of 10 stocks rising and 3 declining as 26 securities changed hands, ending in 2,749,084 units trading, valued at $241,908,563, in all market segments.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, in the main and junior markets, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator shows 10 stocks with bids higher than their last selling prices and 4 stocks with offers that were lower.
Main Market| The JSE Market Index fell 205.19 points to 76,128.35, the JSE All Jamaican Composite index lost 229.40 points to close at 83,833.34 and the JSE combined index declined by 181.96 points to close at 78,141.73.
Gains| Stocks gaining at their last traded prices, at the end of trading in the main market are, Carreras ending with 500 units, the price rose 2 cents to $37.03. Jamaica Broilers ended with 70,537 units changing hands to close with a gain of 3 cents at $4.02, Jamaica Money Market Brokers finishing with 68,763 shares changing hands, to close with a gain of 5 cents, to $6.55. Jamaica Stock Exchange finished with 30,000 shares changing hands, 10 cents higher at $2, National Commercial Bank ended with 8,405 shares trading to gain 20 cents at $19. Sagicor Group finished trading with 27,006 units changing hands to close with a gain of 4 cents at $9.95 and Supreme Ventures finished trading with 4,000 shares with the price rising 3 cents to $1.80
Firm| The stocks in the main market to close without a change in the last traded price are, Cable & Wireless closing with 202,323 units trading at 48 cents. Caribbean Cement ended with 45,596 units trading at $2.50, Kingston Wharves closed with 4,747 shares at $6, Radio Jamaica closed with 4,400 units at $1.30, Scotia Group finished with 33,854 units trading at $20.10 and Scotia Investments ended with 9,002 shares trading at $23.
Declines| The last traded prices of stocks with losses at the end of trading in the main market are, Grace Kennedy closing with 3,896 units trading as the price slipped $1 to $62, Mayberry Investments finished with 400,500 shares trading lower by 5 cents to $1.95 and Sagicor Real Estate Fund ended with 2,000 shares changing hands to close lower 15 cents lower at $7.05.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 7.50% preference share had 309,000 shares changing hands at $2 and Jamaica Public Service Co 9.5% preference share ended with 210,000 units changing hands to close with a gain of $118.90 at $1,125, the move has reduced the yield to 8.44 percent fr0m 9.5 percent, the coupon rate.
Lower Q4 profit squeezes Scotia Group
Scotia Group Jamaica (Scotia Group) reported profit after tax of $10.1 billion for the year ended October, 2014, a decrease of $774 million or 7 percent compared with the net income of $10.9 billion in 2013.
The results for the fourth quarter of $2.5 billion represents an increase of $129 million or 5 percent over the same period last year, and a decrease of $188 million or 7 percent compared to the previous quarter ended July, 2014.
Earnings per share were $3.14 compared to $3.37 in 2013, and the Return on Average Equity was 13.41 percent, down from 15.67 percent last year. During the October quarter, income from foreign currency trading fell sharply from the July quarter, from $636 million to only $234 million and insurance revenues dropped from $661 million to $495 million, a fall of $166 million or 25 percent. While insurance income was higher than in the 2013 quarter at $476 million, the foreign exchange trading gains was still well below the $677 million generated in the 2013 quarter. Loan loss impairment fell to $227 million in the October 2014 quarter slightly higher than the $191 million in 2013 but much lower than the $497 million in the July 2014 quarter.
Jackie Sharp, President and CEO said, “Scotia Group experienced another year of solid performance across all business lines. We saw 9 percent growth year over year in our Commercial & SME portfolios; 6 percent growth in our retail loan portfolio; 12 percent growth in mortgages; and our Premium Money Market Fund which is offered by our subsidiary, Scotia Investments surpassed the $10 Billion mark. During the last half of the year, we have seen strong growth and we are poised for another successful year in 2015.”
Net interest income after impairment losses for the year was $22.9 billion, an increase of $57 million compared to 2013. Other revenue for this financial year amounted to $10.9 billion, a reduction of $465 million or 4 percent compared to 2013. Net fee and commission income remained stable year over year, despite the growth in loan and transaction volumes. Net gains on foreign currency activities decreased by $767 million, while net gains on financial assets increased by $520 million compared to the prior year.
Operating Expenses for the year amounted to $20.2 billion, an increase of $527 million or 2.7 percent compared 2013. The Group experienced an increase in the asset, premium and minimum business taxes of $861 million as a result of the increased rates implemented earlier in the year.
Loans, after allowance for impairment losses amount to $145.7 billion as at the year-end is only up by just over $1 billion from the $144.6 billion at the end of the July quarter but increased 8 percent from $134.8 billion in October 2013.
Non-performing loans (NPLs) at October 31, 2014 totaled $4.9 billion, reflecting an increase of $411 million from prior year. Total NPLs now represent 3.32 percent of total gross loans compared to 3.29 percent last year and 3.31 percent as at July 31, 2014.Interest rates are falling on the deposit side that shows up in lower interest cost in the October quarter over that of the July quarter.
Looking ahead|Scotia should be able to manage the net interest income to their benefit going forward as Treasury bill rate continue to fall. The lower foreign exchange earnings in the last quarter is tied up in the revaluation of the Jamaican dollar during the quarter and should show improvement in the January 2015 quarter with some moderate slippage in the value of the Jamaican dollar. The slow growth in lending is likely to continue for a while longer and will act as a drag of accelerated income and profit growth. Investors should be looking for a gradual growth in profit rather than a big spurt, at any rate earnings should be climbing towards the $3.50 level in 2015.
The Board of Directors approved a final dividend of 40 cents per stock unit payable on January 13, 2015. The stock closed at $20, at the end of trading on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Friday.
Scotiabank Canada to cut 1,500 jobs
Scotiabank Canada is to cut 1,500 positions worldwide and take a profit hit in fourth quarter of its 2014 fiscal year, ending in October. About two thirds of the cut will come from its Canadian operation and according to Yahoo.com will result in a charge of $340 million against 2014 profit.
Despite the charge, profit outlook remain good for 2014 and beyond, but the move is as a result of general weakness of Caribbean economies, sporadic use of branches, weekly and bi-weekly, instead of consistent daily use. The sporadic branch use will result in branch closures, mainly in Caribbean and Mexico. The bank’s foot print in Mexico are many, BNS management said, but the branches to be shuttered lack traffic, which means the bulk of the branch closure will occur in this country. The bank says they will be moving to use more ATMs and internet banking facilities, in place of the physical branches.
The BNS has written down its investment in the economically challenged Venezuela, reducing it to only $50 million.
What is known is that the Caribbean region has suffered considerably from the economic downturn experienced since 2008. The operations in Jamaica has seen profit stagnated in Jamaican dollars and slipped in Canadian dollars as the Jamaican dollar was devalued. Profits stagnated in Trinidad banking subsidiary, as well. Loan demand has not been robust within the region either, and the absence of a meaningful pick up in this critical area will result in a drag on profit growth, as long as that remains the case. The sharp fall in the price of oil is going to place pressure on the twin island state of Trinidad and Tobago and by extension some of the other territories that may be dependent somewhat on business out of Trinidad. This latest development could be negative for Scotia’s Trinidad operation. Compounding the problem for Scotia, is that Jamaica that has started enjoying moderate growth that could lead to increased private sector loan demand, is faced with lower demand for government funding, as the government moves from deficit financing to one of surplus.
Lending at Scotia Bank jumps
Loans at Scotia Group, grew 10 percent since July last year, to hit $144.6 billion at the end of July this year, from $131 billion. While loans grew by only $2 billion up to April, from October last year, it jumped $8 billion in the latest quarter, a 20 percent increase annualised, a strong increase for a banking group that commands a large 39 percent of the commercial banking loan market.
The robust growth in one quarter coming after two quarters of slow growth, raises the question, if there are lumpy new loans booked in the last quarter, that are not likely to be repeated soon, making the increase not reflective of what may be expected going forward. The question was put the Scotia’s CEO Jacqueline Sharp.
“We did have some lumpy commercial loans in Q3, but we also are seeing pick-up on the retail side. So we do expect loan growth to continue, but just not as fast as the growth that took place in Q3” Sharp said.
Scotia Group trades at $21.70
Scotia Group traded as high as $21.70 in early trading this morning as more than 1 million shares traded. Stockbroker, Scotia Investment bought the bulk of the amount that traded at $21.70 some of which were crosses. The price drifted down to $19.80 with 2,500 units, there was 100,000 units on offer at $19.80. The opened trading at $19.43. The trades helped push the all Jamaican index up by 1,658 points to 79,177.73 at 10.12am.
other noticeable trades were 500,000 Sagicor Group shares at $8.80 and Pan Jam 100,000 units, at $49.
Heavy JSE trading but mostly crosses
Trading was heavy on the Jamaica Stock Exchange on Thursday with activity in 29 securities, accounting for 19,315,234 units changing hands valued at $138,385,972. There were a number of large trades as Barita Investment was involved in a series of crosses that helped to drive up the overall volume. At the end of trading the main indices declined but 13 stocks rose in price to 8 that declined. The stocks that dominated trades are Carreras, Desnoes & Geddes, Grace Kennedy, Jamaica Broilers, Jamaica Stock Exchange, National Commercial Bank, Sagicor Group, Scotia Group and Seprod.
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Main Market| The JSE Market Index fell by 200.81 points to 70,040.17 and the JSE All Jamaican Composite index closed with a fall of 224.55 points at 77,025.83.
Gains| Stocks recording gains at the end of trading in the main market are Cable & Wireless with a mere 4,200 units to gain 4 cents in closing at 34 cents, Desnoes & Geddes with 663,400 units to end up a cent higher at $4.50, Grace Kennedy with 402,705 shares valued at $21,750,097 with the price rising by a cent to $54.01, Jamaica Money Market Brokers with 23,422 shares to close 5 cents higher at $6.70, Jamaica Producers 151,096 units to gain 2 cents to close at $15.62, Kingston Wharves with 183,651 shares to close 2 cents higher at $5.02, Proven Investments 320 ordinary shares to close at 2 US cents higher at 18 US cents, Sagicor Real Estate Fund 20,200 shares to close at $6.08 with an 8 cents gain, Scotia Investments with 211,369 units to close 15 cents up, at $21.65, Seprod with 586,550 units valued at $6,168,355, closed with a 20 cents gain at $10.70 and Supreme Ventures with 28,202 units closed with a gain of 8 cents at $1.98.
Firm| There were 5 stocks in the main market closing without a change in price as Gleaner with 6,000 shares, closed at $1.10, Jamaica Broilers 1,420,087 units valued at $6,560,425 to close at $4.57, Mayberry Investments 199,260 units to close at $1.45, Pulse Investments with 40,000 shares, closed at 30 cents and Radio Jamaica with 7,025 units to close at $1.29.
Declines| The number of stocks that declined in the main market are Caribbean Cement with 112,950 units while losing 45 cents to close at $2.50, Carreras with 545,700 units with a value of $18,549,227 as the price closed down 45 cents at $33.50, Jamaica Stock Exchange with 10,200,000 units valued at $19,278,000 and closed with a loss of 6 cents at $1.89, National Commercial Bank saw trading in 1,396,013 shares valued at $24,907,892 with 97 cents fall to $18.03, Sagicor Group put in 1,217,665 units with a value of $10,653,390 to close 50 cents lower at $8.50 and Scotia Group with 861,576 shares valued at $16,361,316, closed with a cent off at $18.99.
Preference| Jamaica Money Market Brokers 8.75% preference share traded 321,495 units to close a cent higher at $3.03 and Jamaica Public Service 5% D preference share traded 1,000 shares to close at 35 cents
Junior Market| The JSE Junior Market Index declined by 0.26 points to close at 708.86 as only 5 stocks traded in this market.
Gains| The sole stocks recording gains at the end of trading in the junior market is General Accident Insurance with 318,132 units to close with a 3 cents decline at $1.40.
Firm Trades| Stocks in the junior market that traded to close at the same price as the day before are Caribbean Producers with 329,316 shares at $2.65, Lasco Distributors with 31,000 shares changing hands at $1.20 and Lasco Financial with 900 units to close at $1.
Declines| Lasco Manufacturing with 32,000 shares and closed with a cent decline at $1.06 was the only stock declining in the junior market at the end of trading.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator had 7 stocks with the bid higher than the last selling price and 3 stocks with offers that were lower.
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