JSE Group profit triples
THE Jamaica Stock Exchange Group (JSEG), which operates the local stock market, reported $37-million net profit for its September 2015 third-quarter profit, or more than three times the level a year earlier due to record market activity.
Its revenues also jumped to $156.6 million or three-quarters higher than a year earlier due primarily to an increase in cess and fee income, stated the JSEG in financials released Wednesday.
The JSE continues to experience increased market activity, and in October the JSE Main Index hit an all-time high, surpassing 120,592 points which beat the previous record achieved a decade earlier on April 26, 2005. Since January, in excess of 20 stocks have more than doubled in price, with top stock Desnoes & Geddes increasing from just under $7 a share to beyond $30, due to its acquisition by beer company Heineken.
During the quarter the company opened a retail repo services division which already contributed to revenues in the quarter.
“The group reaped additional rewards from its income diversification efforts during the third quarter. It is also expected that this will continue in the medium to long term as the group continued to pursue a strategic path of growth through the promotion of new and existing markets, new product development, and the continuous improvement of service delivery to the group’s customers and stakeholders,” stated the group.
The group also expects an active outlook.
“The improvement in business and consumer confidence has translated to positive performance of listed companies, and by extension advances in all the JSE market indices. The outlook for the remainder of the year is positive,” stated the results.