Stephen Facey Chairman & Paul Hanworth Chief Operating Officer

The market value for PanJam Investment at the end of Friday was $48 billion or just $1 billion more than the value of the group’s 31.56 percent investment in Sagicor Group.
In other words, investors can get all the real estate owned by PanJam along with the other assets for just $1 billion assuming the Sagicor shares were disposed of, an investment in PanJam becomes a great value play as investors are not valuing the company for much more than the profit contributed by Sagicor Group.
But the PanJam shares may become even more appealing as the group expand on an investment spree of sorts. In 2018, the group bought out its partners half holdings in the Oceana property in downtown Kingston and now owns it fully. It acquired property at Olivier Road, that neighbours the Manor Park Plaza owned by them. It acquired 6 acres in Montego Freeport and increased its investment portfolio of equity from $1.76 billion to $2.4 billion.
The company generated gross cash flow of $2 billion for 2017 and with such healthy annual inflows is not stopping the investment train anytime soon, especially with interest rates on Jamaican debt so low currently.
The group delivered flat profit attributable to shareholders of PanJam Investment for the quarter ended March 2018 of $827 million versus $830 million for the similar quarter in 2017. Net profit attributable to owners for the 2017 calendar year amounted to $4.1 billion, up from $4.05 billion in 2016, $3.19 billion in 2015 and $2.84 billion in 2014. Share of results from associated and joint venture companies continue to grow and dominate the group’s earnings with an increase of 6 percent in 2017 to $3.9 billion, from $3.7 billion in 2016. Sagicor accounted for $3.8 billion of the 2018 profit.
“During 2017, we increased our investment in Jamaica through a number of transactions, including our purchase of the Olivier Road property, the assumption of our former partner’s interest in Oceana, our increased stake in New Castle from 25 percent to 33 1/3 percent and the additional capital deployed in equity securities of locally-listed companies.”
“Our support for the development of local venture and private equity capital markets continues through our involvement in the First Angels Jamaica investor group and our participation in the Development Bank of Jamaica’s Jamaica Venture Capital Programme and National Business Model Competition,” the company’s management stated in their report to shareholders.
Investment assets at December 2017 stood at $4.8 billion up from $4.1 billion at the end of 2016. The 2017 portfolio mix reflected an increase in equity holdings, from 43 percent to 50 percent of the total portfolio, and in repurchase agreements and deposits, from 17 percent to 34 percent.
According to PanJam’s management, “Our equity portfolio is diverse, with investments in North and South American and Caribbean markets across a broad range of industries. The Company maintains a majority of its investment assets in foreign currency, mainly USD, though this has reduced in line with our view of improved prospects for Jamaican investments and the local currency. Looking ahead, we will focus on growing the size of our trading portfolio, with particular focus on the Jamaican markets and the increased number of new offerings. As always, we will leverage the expertise of our Investment Committee and adhere to the guidelines they provide.”
The acquisition of the Montego Freeport property is to house a business hotel, retail shops geared to the tourism industry and office spaces, Stephen Facey told shareholders at the recently held annual general meeting.