The Jamaica Stock Exchange Main Market ended trading on Friday, with the index rising after the heavyweights, Caribbean Cement, NCB Financial, PanJam Investment and Scotia Group rose by a dollar or more, with more stocks falling than rising as investors exchanged 46 percent fewer shares than on Thursday.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index increased 1,974.17 points to settle at 403,525.65, Main Index gained 1,787.12 points to close at 368,099.13 and the JSE Financial Index advanced by 0.67 points to finish at 96.52.
Trading ended with 45 securities changing hands compared to 41 securities on Thursday and ended with the prices of 14 stocks rising, the prices of 17 declining and 14 remaining unchanged. The average PE Ratio of the market ended at 15.5 based on IC Insider.com’s forecast of 2020-21 earnings.
he market closed with an exchange of 10,324,462 shares for $54,359,400 compared to 18,091,098 units at $52,570,216 on Thursday.
Wigton Windfarm led trading with 3.87 million shares for 39.8 percent of total volume, followed by Transjamaican Highway with 2.24 million units for 23.1 percent of the day’s trade and Pulse Investments with 1.88 million units for 19.4 percent market share. Jamaica Broilers Group was the only other stock to exceed a million shares and ended with 1.05 million units changing hands.
Trading for the day ended with an average of 229,432 units changing hands for the day at $1,207,987 for each security, in comparison to an average of 441,246 shares at $1,282,200 on Thursday. The average trade for the month to date ended at 460,700 units at $2,591,884, in contrast to 479,152 units at $2,702,302. Trading month to date compares adversely to July with an average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows three stocks ended with bids higher than their last selling prices and three with lower offers.
At the close of the market, Caribbean Cement climbed $1 to settle at $43.50 with an exchange of 15,441 shares, Eppley rose 32 cents to end at $17.82 with 1,000 stock units traded, Grace Kennedy fell 49 cents to finish at $56.01 with 30,079 stocks changing hands. Jamaica Broilers Group carved out a loss of $1.50 to close at $23 with investors transferring 1,049,111 stock units, Jamaica Producers Group jumped 98 cents to end at $22.98 in an exchange of 905 shares. 
Jamaica Stock Exchange fell 35 cents to settle at $20.14 with 3,815 stock units traded, JMMB Group advanced 60 cents to close at $31.30 with investors switching ownership of 38,865 units, Kingston Properties finished 40 cents higher at $7.60 with 250 stock units changing hands. Kingston Wharves declined by 90 cents to end at $49.10 with an exchange of 3,134 units, NCB Financial Group increased by $1 to close at $139, with 30,821 stocks traded, PanJam Investment climbed $3.50 to end at $68 with investors transferring 932 stock units. Proven Investments carved out a loss of $1.75 to finish at $34.10 with 40,514 stock units changing hands, Scotia Group climbed $1.75 to settle at $48 in the exchange of 27,903 stock units, Seprod dropped 50 cents to end at $54.50 with 5,874 stock units traded and Wisynco Group carved out a loss of 50 cents to close at $16.90 with 48,649 stock units crossing the exchange.
In the preference segment, Eppley 8.75% lost 53 cents to close at $7.47, with 101 shares changing hands.
Prices of securities trading are those for the last transaction of each stock unless otherwise stated.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index dropped by 223.64 points to settle at 401,551.48, the Main Index declined by 383.35 points to end at 366,312.01, the JSE Financial Index lost 0.10 points to settle at 95.85.
Trading ended with an average of 441,246 units changing hands at $1,282,200 for each security, in comparison to an average of 871,770 shares at $7,874,805 at the close on Wednesday. The average trade for the month to date ended at 479,152 units at $2,702,302 for each security, in contrast to 482,123 units at $2,813,629. Trading month to date compares well, with a July average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Key Insurance declined by 30 cents in closing at $8.09 with investors swapping 4,549 stock units, Kingston Wharves gained $1 to close at $50 after trading at 4,058 shares, Mayberry Investments rose 39 cents to end at $6 and crossing the exchange, with 424,095 stocks. Mayberry Jamaican Equities advanced 46 cents to $8.75, after exchanging 250 shares, Palace Amusement rose $198 to settle at $1750, with 33 units clearing the market, PanJam Investment fell 50 cents in closing at $64.50 in an exchange of 1,366 shares. Proven Investments increased $1.83 to settle at $35.85 in exchanging 3,100 stocks, Seprod carved out a gain of 85 cents to end at $55, after 9,670 shares passed through the market and Wisynco Group increased 85 cents to end at $17.40 in exchanging 9,404 stock units.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index lost 1,637.5 points to settle at 401,775.12, the Main Index lost 1,462.96 points to end at 366,695.36, the JSE Financial Index shed 0.01 point to close at 95.95.
Also trading over a million units are Pulse Investments with 1.55 million shares and Sagicor Select Financial Fund 1.25 million units.
Kingston Properties gained $1.04 to end at $7.20 in an exchange of174 stocks, Kingston Wharves dropped by $5 to close at $49 changing hands 600 units, NCB Financial Group increased $7 to close at $138 after exchanging 98,898 shares. 138 Student Living declined by $1.18 ending at $5.80 after exchanging 325 units, PanJam Investment fell $7 in ending at $65 and exchanging 205 stock units, Proven Investments lost $1.92 to end at $34.02, with 200 stock units changing hands, Scotia Group increased 50 cents to settle at $46.50 with investors swapping 1,500 units. Seprod lost 85 cents to close at $54.15 with an exchange of 325 units and Wisynco Group dropped by 70 cents in closing at $16.55 after exchanging 50,260 stock units.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index lost 1,959.50 points to settle at 403,412.62, the Main Index shed 1,852.03 points to close at 368,158.32 and the JSE Financial Index dipped 0.13 points to end at 95.96.
Trading month to date compares well, with July that ended with an average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Mayberry Investments advanced by 75 cents in closing at $5.85, with 36,930 units passing through the market, MPC Caribbean Clean Energy lost $10.99 to close at $152.01 after exchanging 123 stock units, NCB Financial Group declined by $7.50 to close at $131 and finishing with 199,286 stock units crossing the exchange. Palace Amusement rose 50 cents to close at $1,552 after clearing the market with 19 units, PanJam Investment climbed $2 to close at $72 with investors swapping 3,804 stocks, Proven Investments rose $2.04 to close at $35.94 and finishing trading of 18,376 shares. Salada Foods carved out a gain of $1 to settle at $29 with investors swapping 50 units, Scotia Group rose $1 to end at $46, with 1,660 stock units changing hands, Seprod carved out a gain of $1 to settle at $55 in trading 16,225 stock units. Stanley Motta fell 33 cents in finishing at $4.80 trading 1,000 stocks and Sygnus Credit Investments lost 39 cents to end at $15.50, with 22,258 shares clearing the market.
IC bid-offer Indicator| At the end of trading, the Investor’s Choice bid-offer indicator reading for the market shows one stock ended with the bid higher than the last selling price and three with lower offers.
Mayberry Jamaican Equities lost 65 cents to end at $8.10 with an exchange of 7,945 shares, MPC Caribbean Clean Energy climbed $11 to $163 in trading just one share, Palace Amusement dropped $138.50 to $1,551.50, with nine units crossing the market. PanJam Investment lost $2 to end at $70 trading 3,160 units, Portland JSX advanced by 38 cents to close at $7.88 with an exchange of 9,700 stocks, Salada Foods rose $3 to $28 in trading 13,594 stock units. Scotia Group gained 95 cents in ending at $45 while exchanging 11,930 stock units and Seprod lost 99 cents to end at $54 and crossing the exchange with 26,126 stocks.
This week’s focus: 138 Students Living reported a 44 percent increase in revenues to hit $334 million from $223 million in the June 2019 quarter and a 60 percent rise in the nine months to $1.09 billion. The company moved from a loss of $17 million in the 2019 third quarter to a profit of $132 million in 2020 and from a loss of $60 million in the nine months to June, to a profit of $402 million. Operating cost fell in both periods compared with the 2019 cost. The big problem is that the company continues the extremely poor practice of not showing operating and administrative expenses separately, making it impossible to see what gross margins are. The significant increase in profit is due to claims made on the University going back to 2019, which are booked in the current year that distorts earnings from ongoing operations. 
While earnings per share for the quarter is an attractive 32 cents and year to date 97 cents. Earnings from ongoing operations suggest that the full year’s results should be in the order of 40 cents after a regular tax charge.
The average projected gain for the Junior Market IC TOP 10 stocks is 278 percent, and 152 percent for the JSE Main Market, based on 2020-21 earnings, an indication of potentially more significant gains in the Junior Market than in the Main Market.
Trading ended with an average of 468,316 units changing hands, for the day at $5,144,3583 for each security, in comparison to an average of 909,763 shares at $3,152,673 on Thursday. The average trade for the month to date, ended at 409,246 units at $2,120,026, for each security, in contrast to 401,777 units at $1,737,639 on Thursday. Trading month to date compares well to July, with an average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Jamaica Producers increased 90 cents to end at $22.90 and finishing with 8,565 shares changing hands, Jamaica Stock Exchange lost 54 cents to close at $20 in trading 130,275 stock units. JMMB Group rose $1.15 to settle at $31.15, trading 23,103 shares, Key Insurance gained 92 cents to end at $7.99 in exchanging 19,577 stock units, MPC Caribbean Clean Energy carved out a gain of $2 in ending at $152 and finishing trading of 800 stock units. Palace Amusement dropped $93.83 to close at $1,690 with investors switching ownership of 10 units, PanJam Investment jumped $3.50 to $72 with an exchange of 86,201 stock units, Proven Investments carved out a gain of 21 cents to close at $34.01 in trading 12,430 stock units. Scotia Group carved out a loss $1.95 in ending at $44.05 in exchanging 102,735 shares, Seprod climbed 99 cents to $54.99, with 7,744 stocks changing hands and Wisynco Group lost 29 cents to end at $17.50 clearing the market with 177,442 stock units.
Trading ended with an average of 909,763 units changing hands for the day at $3,152,673 for each security, in comparison to an average of 152,000 shares at $1,199,070 on Wednesday. The average trade for the month to date ended at 401,777 units at $1,737,639 for each security, in contrast to 330,159 units at $1,538,143 on Wednesday. Trading month to date compares well to July with an average of 374,929 units at $2,445,605 (392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Kingston Wharves climbed 50 cents to $53, with just 2,071 units passing through the market, Mayberry Investments carved out a loss 75 cents to settle at $5.15 in an exchange of 19,239 shares, Mayberry Jamaican Equities dropped by 45 cents to close at $8.75 with investors wapping 152,360 units. NCB Financial climbed $7.88 trading 65,722 stock units at $137.90, PanJam Investment rose $1.75 to end at $68.50, with 11,860 shares changing hands, Proven Investments dropped $1.90 in ending at $33.80, with 2,500 stocks passing through the market. Sagicor Group increased by $4 to close at $44 in exchanging 682,448 stocks, Salada Foods shed $2 to settle at $25 after exchanging 42,000 units, Scotia Group dropped $1.73 to end at $46 in an exchange of 3,707 stocks. Seprod lost $2.24 to close at $54 in an exchange of 16,518 stocks, Stanley Motta rose 38 cents to settle at $5.13 with investors switching ownership of 37 shares, Supreme Ventures lost 65 cents to end at $14.50 with investors trading 152,771 shares. Victoria Mutual Investments declined by 37 cents to $6.57 with 69,669 stock units changing hands and Wisynco Group gained 58 cents to end at $17.79, with 11,650 stocks clearing the market.
At the close, the All Jamaican Composite Index fell 2,977.80 points to settle at 399,966.07, the Main Index dropped by 2,833.33 points to end at 364,976.44 and the JSE Financial Index carved out a loss 0.77 points to close at 94.06.
For the month to date, the average trade is 330,159 units at $1,538,143 for each security that traded, in contrast to 360,995 units at $1,596,828 to Tuesday. Trading for the month to date compares well to July with an average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Key Insurance carved out a gain of 50 cents ending at $7.50 with investors swapping 1,135 units, Kingston Properties increased 57 cents to $7.60 after exchanging ten units. Kingston Wharves declined by $1.30 to close at $52.50 passing through the market 7,089 stock units, MPC Caribbean Energy declined by $19.85 to settle at $150 in trading 770 stock units, NCB Financial fell by $6.98 in closing at $130.02, with 222,268 shares passing through the market. Proven Investments increased 30 cents to settle at $35.70 in an exchange of 27,348 shares, Sagicor Group advanced by 90 cents in ending at $40 after trading 52,290 units, Salada Foods dropped by $1 to end at $27 in an exchange of 1,000 shares. Seprod advanced by $1.24 to close at $56.24 after trading 5,507 stocks, Sygnus Credit Investments shed 31 cents to close at $15.99 with 7,381 stocks changing hands and Wisynco Group shed 67 cents to end at $17.21 with investors swapping 82,451 units.
At the close of the market, the All Jamaican Composite Index carved out a loss of 2,268.81 points to settle at 402,943.87. The JSE Main Index fell 2,044.31 points to end at 367,809.77, the JSE Financial Index fell 0.24 points to settle at 94.83.
The day ended with 269,280 units on average trading at $1,129,730 for each security, in comparison to an average of 308,397 shares at $1,154,272 on Monday. The average traded for the month to date is 360,995 units at $1,596,828 for each security, in contrast to 378,165 units at $1,684,276 on Monday. Trading month to date compares well to July with an average of 392,128 shares for $2,444,356.
Key Insurance fell 50 cents to end at $7, with 34,354 shares passing through the market. NCB Financial Group climbed $3.45 to end at $137 after 79,513 shares crossed the exchange, 138 Student Living rose 60 cents to $6.60, finishing trading with 3,119 stock units, PanJam Investment fell $1.26 to $66.74, with an exchange of 11,013 shares, Proven Investments advanced by 40 cents to close at $35.40 trading 151 units. Sagicor Groupfell $1.41 after closing at $39.10 and exchanging 39,769 stocks, Sagicor Real Estate Fund lost 84 cents to end at $8 in trading 10,098 units, Salada Foods climbed $1 to close at $28 and clearing the market with just 200 shares. Scotia Group gained $3.30 to close at $47.50, finishing trading of 7,124 shares, Seprod fell $1.96 to close at $55 after exchanging 31,637 stocks and Stanley Motta declined by 38 cents to settle at $4.75 in trading 15,000 shares.