Apr 2014 Financial News

Guardian shedding stake in Island Village - Deal pending but delayed to yearend

Apr 30, 2014

Guardian Life Limited (GLL) which holds a 24 per cent stake in Ocho Rios Beach Limited (ORBL), says it hopes to dispose of its stake in the company by year end.

ORBL is the owner and operator of Island Village in Ocho Rios, St Ann.

Guardian says its interest in ORBL is available for immediate sale in its "present condition"; that it is not "abandoning the property", but is selling to refocus on its core business of life insurance in Jamaica.

Guardian also said Tuesday that it has an offer for the ORBL stake, but the deal has been delayed.

Island Village was built in 2002 at a cost of US$20 million. The Village is located on a four-and-a-half-acre property and its other owners include Sigma and Ray Chang.

The original concept for the multi-purpose centre was to create an attraction that would serve as an automatic draw for cruise visitors.

Guardian paid US$79 per share for its ORBL stake in October 2000. Guardian Life holds 24,000 shares, while another company in the Guardian Group holds 1,000 shares, said GLL president Eric Hosin on Tuesday.

Those 1,000 shares are also up for sale at the same price, he said.

Impairment provision

Two years ago, the insurance company made an impairment provision of $38.2 million on the investment based, it said, on an offer of US$60 per share by an unidentified bidder.

That sale was expected to be finalised on February 17, this year, but closure of the transaction is now targeted to happen before year end, the insurance company said.

Its evaluation of the offer for ORBL at US$60 per share represents the best estimate of Ocho Rios Beach's fair value, Guardian said in a statement.

In separate releases, the life company also declared itself very solvent with a minimum capital ratio of 190 per cent, which is above the industry benchmark, and said it made more than $2 billion or 65 per cent more in net profit in 2013.


Source:
business@gleanerjm.com
Jamaica Gleaner
Wednesday April 30, 2014

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