Strong buying interest across banking, telecoms and consumer stocks drove a broad-based rally on the Nigerian Exchange last week, lifting market capitalisation by N3.84tn as investors sustained demand for large-cap and fundamentally strong equities. The bullish momentum, which pushed the market above the N100tn mark during the week, was supported by positive market breadth, heavy trading in financial services stocks and renewed confidence in the equities space, culminating in a firm close on Friday with gains in key bellwether stocks, writes TEMITOPE AINA
Sustained buying interest across major stocks lifted the Nigerian Exchange equities market by N3.84tn in the past trading week, as investors piled into banking, telecoms, industrial and consumer names, pushing the market deeper into bullish territory.
Data from the NGX showed that total market capitalisation rose to N103.78tn at the close of trading on Friday, while the All-Share Index gained 3.71 per cent week-on-week to settle at 162,298.08 points. The strong performance saw the equities market cross the N100tn mark during the week, reflecting heightened investor confidence and improved sentiment.
The rally gathered further momentum on Friday, with the market closing the session bullish. The ASI rose by 0.93 per cent, lifting the year-to-date return to 4.30 per cent. Trading during the session was driven largely by heavyweight stocks, including MTN Nigeria, Access Holdings, GTCO, Zenith Bank and Jaiz Bank, which recorded significant investor demand.
Despite the strong market performance, trading activity moderated compared with the previous week. A total of 4.164bn shares valued at N94.03bn were exchanged in 248,254 deals, compared with 7.821bn shares worth N134.47bn traded in 150,799 deals in the preceding week.
Daily trading data showed mixed activity over the five sessions. On Monday, 695.63m shares valued at N18.56bn were traded, while Tuesday recorded 758.93m shares worth N19.83bn. Trading peaked on Wednesday with 1.44bn shares valued at N20.69bn, before easing to 645.02m shares worth N16.42bn on Thursday and 624.06m shares valued at N18.52bn on Friday.
Sectoral performance
The Financial Services industry dominated market activity, leading the volume chart with 2.651bn shares valued at N35.96bn traded in 93,706 deals. This accounted for 63.67 per cent of total equity turnover volume and 38.24 per cent of value.
The Services sector followed with 369.96m shares worth N3.38bn traded in 16,521 deals, while the ICT industry ranked third with 297.94m shares valued at N5.73bn in 21,548 deals.
Trading in Universal Insurance Plc, Linkage Assurance Plc and Access Holdings Plc dominated the market by volume. The three equities accounted for a combined 1.261bn shares worth N5.06bn in 13,819 deals, representing 30.28 per cent of total turnover volume and 5.38 per cent of total value traded.
Market breadth remained strongly positive during the week. Eighty-four equities appreciated in price, higher than the 73 gainers recorded in the previous week. Twenty-two stocks declined, compared with 23 decliners previously, while 42 equities closed unchanged.
On the gainers’ chart, Multiverse Mining and Exploration Plc led the market with a strong price rally, followed by McNichols Plc, May & Baker Nigeria Plc, Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc and Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc. Other notable gainers included Eunisell Interlinked Plc, Fidson Healthcare Plc, E-Tranzact International Plc, SCOA Nigeria Plc and UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust.
On the losing side, Aluminium Extrusion Industries Plc topped the decliners’ list, alongside Austin Laz & Company Plc, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, Ikeja Hotel Plc and Juli Plc. Conoil Plc, Learn Africa Plc, SUNU Assurances Nigeria Plc, UPDC Plc and First HoldCo Plc also recorded price declines during the week.
Activity in exchange-traded products declined during the week. A total of 604,668 units valued at N138.52m were traded in 1,480 deals, compared with 4.67m units worth N316.33m exchanged in 968 deals in the previous week.
All sectoral indices closed higher during the week, with the exception of the NGX Sovereign Bond Index, which ended the period flat.
In corporate actions, First HoldCo Plc listed an additional 2.576bn ordinary shares of 50 kobo each on the NGX, following its private placement of 3.277bn shares at N32.50 per share. With the listing of the additional shares, the company’s total issued and fully paid-up shares increased from 41.88bn to 44.45bn.
Analysts said the strong weekly performance reflects sustained investor appetite for equities, driven by bargain hunting, expectations of improved corporate earnings and continued participation in fundamentally strong stocks. They noted that the ability of the market to remain above the N100tn level could further support confidence and attract additional inflows in the weeks ahead.
