Trinidad-based insurance conglomerate returns to trading in Jamaica after seven-year hiatus

In an Our Today follow-up, Trinidad-based insurance conglomerate, Guardian Holdings Limited (GHL) has been relisted on the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) main market after a seven-year hiatus.

The relisting, which took place today (May 5), follows the company’s application for listing consequent upon its publishing of an abridged financial statement in accordance with the listing requirements of the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

“We are happy the company (GHL) decided to relist its ordinary shares and we hope we will assist you in creating the value that every company seeks to receive from listing on an Exchange,” JSE Managing Director Marlene Street Forrest said in her welcome to the virtual audience and those on location.

The company has in issue only 232,024,923 ordinary shares with NCB Financial holding just under 62 per cent. GHL is a holding company which has publicly listed shares on the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange.

It is the parent company for an integrated financial services group known as Guardian Group with a focus on life, health, property and casualty insurance, pensions and assessment management. The company was listed on the JSE’s main market for 13 years before delisting at the end of 2013 based on the illiquidity of its shares, which were trading around $270.

Although GHL won’t be raising capital through its reintroduction on the JSE, the listing price of its shares in Jamaican dollars is not yet known. The board of GHL had indicated that the financial holding company is moving to cross list its ordinary shares on the JSE based on the increasingly dynamic market, which has had greater public enthusiasm towards equities in recent years.

Guardian Holdings reported increased profit for the year ended December 2020 with profit attributable to shareholders rising 12 per cent to TT$774 million from TT$692 million in 2019 with earnings per share of TT$3.34 versus TT$2.98 in the prior year.

Net income from insurance underwriting activities increased to TT$1,413 million, a 47 per cent rise over the TT$959 million reported in 2019, the company reported. Net income from investing activities declined 28 per cent from TT$1,370 million to TT$989 million.

The Group result in 2020 was not adversely affected by catastrophes as was the case in 2019, the directors informed shareholders. Gross Written Premiums increased from TT$6,367 million to TT$6,557 million or three per cent.

Total assets rose to TT$33 billion and shareholders’ equity stood at TT$4.7 billion.