The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) saw a significant boost in its market capitalization on Monday following the listing of 2,418,099,300 ordinary shares of Notore Chemical Industries Plc.
This strategic move elevated the market cap of the local bourse to N55.72 billion, despite a subdued trading session that saw the benchmark index slip to 98,132.15 points.
The NGX Regulation issued a market bulletin revealing that the additional shares of Notore Chemical Industries Plc, each priced at 50 Kobo, stemmed from a private placement.
Priced at N43.75 per share, this placement brought in a substantial N105.79 billion, thereby increasing Notore’s total issued and fully paid-up shares from 1,612,066,200 to 4,030,165,500 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each.
At the close of trading, Notore’s stock remained steady, closing at N62.5.
Despite the positive impact on market capitalization, trading activities on the local bourse presented a mixed picture.
Investor sentiment took a downturn, leading to notable declines in the shares of Caverton, WAPIC, and ABC Transport, which fell by 10 per cent, 9.30 per cent, and 9.09 per cent, respectively. This reflected a waning market confidence.
Market activity experienced a sharp decline, with the total volume and value of transactions plummeting by 65.64 per cent and 59.69 per cent, respectively, to 379.13 million units and N8.71 billion.
However, the total number of deals for the day showed a positive trend, increasing by 10.97 per cent to reach 10,096 trades.
The performance across sub-sector indices was predominantly bearish, with three out of five sectors closing in the red.
The Banking sector experienced a decline of 1.01 per cent, Consumer Goods fell by 0.07 per cent, and Industrial Goods dipped by 0.01 per cent.
In contrast, the Oil/Gas sector recorded a gain of 1.32 per cent, driven by share price appreciation in Eterna Oil and Conoil, while the Insurance index advanced by 0.15 per cent.
The trading session witnessed a tug-of-war between the bulls and bears, resulting in 22 gainers and 21 losers.
Among the top gainers were Africa Prudential (+10.00 per cent), Cutix (+9.90 per cent), and Eterna (+9.88 per cent).
In terms of trading volume, the United Bank for Africa emerged as the most traded stock with 69.06 million units exchanged in 662 trades, while Seplat led in traded value, amounting to N2.71 billion.
Last week, the Nigerian equity market saw a loss of N1.34 trillion, primarily driven by dips in banking and pension stocks.
The recent listing of Notore Chemical Industries’ additional shares offers a glimpse of optimism amidst a challenging trading environment, potentially setting the stage for renewed investor confidence in the NGX.
