…Posts profit of $194 million for Q2 in June

Mayberry Jamaican Equities is reversing the big losses made in 2020, having experienced a very profitable second quarter.

The company recorded a net profit of $194 million for the April to June 2021 quarter, arising from the continued rebound of the local financial market and favourable performance of anchor stocks in its equities portfolio. For the same period last year, Mayberry Jamaican Equities recorded a net loss of $37.4 million.

The positive performance mainly resulted from increased unrealised gains of $214.8 million on investment securities on top of dividend income of approximately $85 million. During the second quarter, operating results improved by $231.5 million over the corresponding period in 2020 during the onset of COVID-19.

Higher operating expenses

Total operating expenses were higher by $31 million, resulting from higher performance fees and costs associated with business process improvements but the improved results for Q2 2021 were primarily attributable to the revaluation of the equities classified as fair value through profit or loss (FVPL).

Mayberry Jamaican Equities recorded a total comprehensive income of $3.2 billion for the three-month period compared to a total comprehensive income of $775 million for the comparable period April to June 2020.

In her quarterly report to shareholders, Managing Director Natalie G. Augustin states that “this performance will continue to improve as consumer confidence grows and local and global markets recover, following the worldwide rollout of COVID-19 vaccination programmes“.

She states that net revenues for the quarter amounted to $243.2 million, which was an increase of $251.7 million over the corresponding 2020 quarter. This performance, Augustin explained, resulted from higher unrealised gains on investments.

Significant improvements since December 2020

The Mayberry Jamaican Equities managing director advises that the company’s 2021 performance continues to reflect significant improvement following the December 2020 close at $9.89. The company’s stock price closed at $9.31 on June 30, 2021, representing a 16.3 per cent appreciation when compared to that of June 30, 2020.

Total operating expenses for the second quarter increased by $31 million compared to the corresponding quarter in 2020. The majority of this increase relates to management fees resulting from the significantly improved performance, and costs associated with business process improvements.

For Q2 2021, MJE’s operating costs relative to net revenues stood at 20 per cent. The company purchased stocks for April to June 2021, valuing $126.8 million compared to $129.7 million for the corresponding period in 2020. During the quarter under review, Mayberry Jamaican Equities volumes traded 28.23 million units on the Jamaica Stock Exchange versus 63.65 million units compared to Q2 of 2020.