BERRY
LATER THIS year, Mayberry Investments Limited will be launching a fund that will invest directly in medium-sized Jamaican businesses through debt and equity, said its chairman Christopher Berry.
This venture will significantly expand our business in the primary end of the capital market, as we seek to play a more aggressive role in assisting the expansion of the economy, he said in the company's first quarterly report as a publicly held enterprise. Mayberry held a successful initial public offering between March 31 to April 5, following which it was listed on the Jamaica Stock Exchange.
"Net profit for the period was J$157.3 million or 42 per cent of the total 2004 net profit," Mr. Berry said. "This translates to an earnings of $0.16 per share, compared to $0.38 per share for the full year last year."
There has been a 6.5 per cent increase in the company's asset base since the year ended 31 December 2004, he said. This has resulted from an 11 per cent increase in our investment portfolio from J$4.6 billion at 31 December 2004 to $5.1 billion at March 31, 2005. The capital raised from the private placement contributed to this growth.
There was a reduction in its repo liabilities of approximately J$797 million during the quarter. This resulted from the repayment of loans of approximately J$190 million, the investment made in the company by customers as well as its commitment to reducing Repos in its books.
Mayberry's capital base has been strengthened and its ratios have outperformed the Financial Services Commission's (FSC) benchmarks," he said. "Our capital-to-weighted-assets ratio stood at 68 per cent whilst the FSC benchmark is 10 per cent. Our capital-to-weighted-assets ratio stood at 14 per cent whilst the FSC benchmark is six per cent."
Non-interest income generated for the quarter stood at approximately $150 million and net interest income was
approximately $60 million, Mr. Berry said. The overall results include $20 million writeoff Dyoll shares as a result of that company's insolvency.
