Durrant Pate/Contributor

The poor performance on the local equities market in 2025 has bitten Mayberry Jamaican Equities (MJE), which is reporting total comprehensive losses of J$5.7 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2025.

Other comprehensive loss was due to changes in the fair value of equity investments carried at fair value through other comprehensive income (FVTOCI), which contracted by J$1.5 billion or 210% to minus $793.7 million for the year under review, compared to the corresponding period in 2024.

For the December fourth quarter alone, the equities company chalked up total comprehensive losses of almost one billion dollars, reversing the modest profit of J$392.3 million for the similar quarter in 2024. 

The total losses for the quarter under review amounted to $952.7 million. Other comprehensive loss accounted for $111.9 million compared to other comprehensive gain of $274.5 million for Q4 of 2024 due to a decline in the FVTOCI. Net operating loss for December quarter amounted to J$790 million compared to net operating income of J$192 million. 

Chalking up losses

MJE is reporting a net loss of J$840.7 million for the December quarter compared to a profit of J$117.8 million for the same period in 2024. This poor performance was attributed mainly to unfavourable equity market conditions, which led to net unrealised losses on investments of $715 million, compared to net fair value gains of $250 million for the similar quarter last year. 

Total operating expenses for the quarter under review plummeted by 31.5% or $23.4 million to J$51 million compared to the corresponding period in the prior year. This resulted in a loss per share (LPS) of J$0.70, as against an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.10. The company reports a net loss of $4.9 billion for the twelve months ended December 31, 2025, compared to a loss of $138.5 million for the prior year of 2024. 

This performance was due to unrealised losses on fair value through profit and loss (FVTPL) investments attributable to soft market conditions. Total operating expenses for the twelve months ended December 31, 2025, went down by 13.3% or J$28.6 million to $186.5 million in 2024. This resulted in a loss per share (LPS) of J$4.10 for the entire 2025, versus a LPS of $0.12 for 2024.

Key highlights include:

• Dividend income increased by 25% or $22.5 million based on dividends declared by investees on some holdings. The top contributors to the portfolio’s dividend revenues for the financial quarter were Supreme Ventures Limited, JMMB Group Limited and NCB Financial Group.
• Unrealised losses on investments in associates totaled J$495.2 million. This compares to unrealised gains of J$140.3 million for the corresponding quarter in 2024. Whilst the portfolio concentration in Supreme Ventures at 56% of the portfolio has adversely impacted the results, the outlook for portfolio improvement remains positive in the medium term. The Company’s investment objective is to achieve long-term capital appreciation while preserving capital, and continues to employ a value-based approach to identifying and investing in high-quality public businesses. 
• Net unrealised losses on financial instruments at FVTPL totalled J$219.6 million; this compares to gains of $110 million for Q4 2024. Operating Expenses Total operating expenses amounted to J$50.9 million for the quarter, representing a decrease of 31.5% or J$23.4 million compared to Q4 2024. The reduction was mainly attributable to lower expenses incurred for marketing, professional services and management fees. 

For the twelve months ending December 31, 2025, total operating expenses decreased by 13.3% or J$28.6 million compared to the prior year. The net book value per share decreased by 32% to $10.12 as at December 31, 2025, compared to $14.89 for December 31, 2024.

The decrease noted resulted primarily from the reduction in the carrying value of investments (unrealised portion) in associates and investment securities attributed to lower market prices of key securities associated with general stock market conditions. MJE’s stock price closed at $8.75 on December 31, 2025, a 26.2% decline over its price of $11.86 at December 31, 2024.