PAN Jamaican Investment Trust (Pan Jam) reported second quarter net profit of $486 million, a four per cent rise driven by an increased stake in its associate company, Sagicor Life Jamaica.
The Jamaican conglomerate also complained about what it said were three years of government delays in granting approval for its Marriott Courtyard Hotel project in Kingston.“The most notable impact on our performance for the quarter was an increase in our share of results of associated and joint venture companies of $227 million, driven largely by our increased Sagicor shareholding,” prefaced the June 30, 2013 ended second-quarter financials jointly signed by chairman Stephen Facey and director Paul Facey.Pan Jam, during the 2012 third quarter, increased its shareholding in insurance giant Sagicor Life Jamaica from one-quarter to one-third. Its results from associated companies consist principally of its 32.8 per cent investment in Sagicor; minority positions in New Castle Co Limited (owners of the Walkerswood and Busha Browne lines of sauces and seasonings), Mavis Bank Coffee Factory Limited, Hardware & Lumber Limited, Caribe Hospitality Limited (developers of the planned New Kingston Marriott Courtyard hotel) and Chukka Caribbean Adventures, stated the directors in the preface.Pan Jam’s core property segment enjoyed overall occupancy levels exceeding 95 per cent for the second quarter, a slight decline from last year, while contribution to group operating profit of $158 million for the quarter ($342 million year-to-date) was $42 million ($16 million year-to-date) lower, attributable to reduced property revaluation gains, stated the financials.Net profit attributable to owners for the six months ended June totalled $710-million, dipping 27 per cent over year-earlier levels due to reduced profits from Sagicor, affected by lower tenure instruments arising from the National Debt Exchange (NDX).“Our results for the first quarter were significantly affected by the full participation by Sagicor and its subsidiary, Sagicor Investments Jamaica Limited, in the NDX in February 2013. Sagicor recorded a realised loss on the exchange of bonds tendered in the NDX of $1.1 billion,” stated the financials.Pan Jam last month broke ground on the US$22-million ($2.2-billion) Marriott hotel in New Kingston. But the group still holds a small amount of debt with assets totaling $22.1 billion with $16.6 billion in stockholder equity. The 130-room hotel is scheduled for completion in 2015 and aims to employ 430 Jamaicans.The directors in the preface of the financials urged stakeholders to remove delays for future projects.“As we plan additional investments in a variety of sectors here and overseas, we are mindful of the length of time – three years – that it has taken to gain approval for this project (Marriott Courtyard). Investors must believe that it is easy to do business in Jamaica, or they will take their capital elsewhere. We urge that our message of change in this area is heeded, otherwise additional investment in projects in the country will be that much more difficult to attract. If we are serious about development in our country we need to bring further levels of transparency and timeliness to the approval of projects, while at the same time ensuring that all laws are complied with and environmental requirements are met,” indicated the financial preface.Pan-Jamaican Investment Trust Chairman Stephen Facey (second left) shakes hands with Minister of Tourism and Entertainment Wykeham McNeill (right) after breaking ground for the Courtyard by Marriott in New Kingston last month. Sharing in the occasion are Opposition Leader Andrew Holness (left) and Opposition spokesman on tourism Ed Bartlett.View the original article here
Pan Jam 2Q profit up
