Stock Investors Gain N720bn in Eight Days

• Stock Investors Gain N720bn in Eight Days

Equity investors have counted gains totalling N720bn as the stock market extended its gaining streak to the eighth consecutive day.

The market capitalisation of equities rose to N13.316tn at the end of trading on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Tuesday from N12.596tn on December 24, 2019.

In the last trading days in the year 2019, the market gained N362bn and a further N358bn in the first four days of 2020.

At the end of trading on Tuesday, the equities market sustained its bullish trend following price appreciation in Dangote Cement Plc, Zenith Bank Plc and Access Bank Plc, which pulled the All-Share Index up 0.90 per cent to close at 27,586.93 basis points.

Activity level was mixed as volume traded fell by 14.2 per cent to 446.383 million units while value traded increased by 8.8 per cent to N5.820bn.

The top traded stocks by volume were United Bank for Africa Plc (86.8 million units), Zenith Bank (73.2 million units) and FBN Holdings Plc (34.7 million units) while Zenith Bank (N1.5bn), UBA (N709.4m) and Dangote Cement (N697.0m) were the top traded stocks by value.

Performance across sectors was largely bullish as all indices, except the AFR-ICT and oil and gas indices lost due to sell-offs in MTN Nigeria Communications Plc and Forte Oil Plc.

The banking index led gainers with a 1.9 per cent gain consequent on buying interest in Zenith Bank and Access Bank.

Similarly, the industrial goods and insurance indices edged higher on the back of gains in Dangote Cement and Lafarge Africa Plc, as well as Consolidated Hallmark Insurance Plc and AIICO Insurance Plc.

Buying interest in Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc and PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc pushed the consumer goods 0.2 per cent higher.

Investor sentiment weakened as market breadth (advance/decline ratio) waned to 1.4x from the 2.3x recorded on Monday as 26 stocks gained as opposed to 19 losers.

The top five gainers were Fidson Healthcare Plc, PZ Cussons, Unity Bank Plc, Consolidated Hallmark Insurance and Cornerstone Insurance, which gained 9.80 per cent, 9.80 per cent, 9.59 per cent, 9.09 per cent and 8.62 per cent respectively.

The top five losers were NCR Nigeria Plc, Livestock Feeds Plc, Courteville Business Solutions Plc, Forte Oil Plc and Jaiz Bank Plc, whose respective share prices declined by 10 per cent, eight per cent, 7.69 per cent, 6.11 per cent and 4.41 per cent.

Analysts at Afrinvest Securities Limited said following the recent trend in the market, they maintained a bullish outlook on the market this week.