Nigerian Stock Market Surges, Crossing N100 Trillion Mark Amidst Broad-Based Rally
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) witnessed a robust and widespread surge last week, driven by significant buying interest across key sectors including banking, telecommunications, and consumer goods. This sustained demand for large-capitalisation and fundamentally strong equities propelled the market’s capitalisation by an impressive N3.84 trillion, pushing it comfortably above the N100 trillion threshold. The bullish momentum was further bolstered by a positive market breadth, substantial trading activity in financial services stocks, and a renewed wave of investor confidence in the equities market, culminating in a strong closing performance on Friday.
Market Performance Highlights:
- Market Capitalisation Growth: The total market capitalisation on the NGX climbed to N103.78 trillion by the close of trading on Friday.
- All-Share Index (ASI) Gain: The ASI recorded a substantial week-on-week increase of 3.71 per cent, settling at 162,298.08 points.
- Crossing the N100 Trillion Milestone: The market’s ability to surpass the N100 trillion mark signifies a notable uplift in investor sentiment and confidence.
- Friday’s Bullish Close: The market concluded the trading week on a positive note, with the ASI rising by 0.93 per cent on Friday, contributing to a year-to-date return of 4.30 per cent.
Heavyweight stocks such as MTN Nigeria, Access Holdings, GTCO, Zenith Bank, and Jaiz Bank were at the forefront of this rally, experiencing significant investor demand and playing a crucial role in driving the market’s upward trajectory.
Trading Activity Analysis:
Despite the strong overall market performance, trading activity saw a slight moderation compared to the preceding week.
- Volume and Value Traded: A total of 4.164 billion shares, valued at N94.03 billion, were exchanged across 248,254 deals. This contrasts with the previous week’s turnover of 7.821 billion shares worth N134.47 billion, traded in 150,799 deals.
- Daily Trading Trends:
- Monday: 695.63 million shares valued at N18.56 billion.
- Tuesday: 758.93 million shares worth N19.83 billion.
- Wednesday: The peak of the week’s trading, with 1.44 billion shares valued at N20.69 billion.
- Thursday: 645.02 million shares worth N16.42 billion.
- Friday: 624.06 million shares valued at N18.52 billion.
Sectoral Performance Dominance:
The Financial Services industry emerged as the leading sector in terms of trading volume and value, underscoring its significant influence on the market.
- Financial Services: This sector dominated activity, accounting for 2.651 billion shares valued at N35.96 billion traded in 93,706 deals. This represented 63.67 per cent of the total equity turnover volume and 38.24 per cent of the total value traded.
- Services Sector: Following closely, the Services sector saw 369.96 million shares worth N3.38 billion traded in 16,521 deals.
- ICT Industry: The ICT industry secured the third position, with 297.94 million shares valued at N5.73 billion exchanged in 21,548 deals.
Key Stock Activity:
Trading in specific stocks significantly contributed to the overall market turnover. Universal Insurance Plc, Linkage Assurance Plc, and Access Holdings Plc were prominent, collectively accounting for 1.261 billion shares worth N5.06 billion in 13,819 deals. This represented a substantial 30.28 per cent of the total turnover volume and 5.38 per cent of the total value traded.
Market Breadth Remains Positive:
The market breadth, a measure of the number of advancing stocks versus declining stocks, remained strongly positive throughout the week.
- Gainers: Eighty-four equities appreciated in price, an increase from the 73 gainers recorded in the previous week.
- Decliners: Twenty-two stocks experienced a decline in price, a marginal decrease from the 23 decliners in the prior week.
- Unchanged Equities: Forty-two equities closed the week without any price movement.
Top Performing Stocks (Gainers):
Multiverse Mining and Exploration Plc led the pack of gainers with a remarkable price rally. Other notable performers included:
- McNichols Plc
- May & Baker Nigeria Plc
- Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc
- Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc
- Eunisell Interlinked Plc
- Fidson Healthcare Plc
- E-Tranzact International Plc
- SCOA Nigeria Plc
- UPDC Real Estate Investment Trust
Top Performing Stocks (Decliners):
On the downside, Aluminium Extrusion Industries Plc topped the list of decliners. Other stocks that recorded price depreciation included:
- Austin Laz & Company Plc
- Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc
- Ikeja Hotel Plc
- Juli Plc
- Conoil Plc
- Learn Africa Plc
- SUNU Assurances Nigeria Plc
- UPDC Plc
- First HoldCo Plc
Exchange-Traded Products (ETPs) and Bond Market:
Activity in exchange-traded products (ETPs) saw a decline. A total of 604,668 units valued at N138.52 million were traded in 1,480 deals, a decrease from the 4.67 million units worth N316.33 million exchanged in 968 deals the previous week. Meanwhile, all sectoral indices closed higher, with the exception of the NGX Sovereign Bond Index, which remained flat for the period.
Corporate Actions:
In a significant corporate development, First HoldCo Plc successfully listed an additional 2.576 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each on the NGX. This listing follows the company’s private placement of 3.277 billion shares at N32.50 per share. Consequently, First HoldCo Plc’s total issued and fully paid-up shares have increased from 41.88 billion to 44.45 billion.
Analyst Outlook:
Market analysts attribute the strong weekly performance to a sustained investor appetite for equities. Factors contributing to this include active bargain hunting, positive expectations regarding corporate earnings, and the continued participation in fundamentally sound stocks. They further noted that the market’s ability to maintain its position above the N100 trillion mark is likely to foster further confidence and potentially attract additional investment inflows in the coming weeks.
