Nigerian Exchange Limited
Insurance Stocks Lead Active Trading as NGX Suffers 0.34% Decline
Nigeria’s equities market fell by 0.34 percent on Thursday as profit-taking in select mid- and small-cap stocks pushed the All-Share Index and market capitalisation to their lowest levels in a month.
The ASI fell from the previous day’s 145,864.80 points to 145,300.01 points, while market capitalisation declined to N91.93 trillion from N92.28 trillion, reflecting a loss of about N358 billion. This pulled year-to-date (YtD) return down to 41.23 percent.
Thursday’s negative close, the steepest in four weeks, came as investors locked in gains from recent rallies. Wema Bank, UPDC, C&I Leasing, Lasaco Assurance, and Sovereign Trust Insurance were among the day’s top percentage losers, each shedding 10 percent.
Lasaco dropped from N5.00 to N4.50, down 50 kobo, while Sovereign Trust Insurance fell from N3.60 to N3.24, losing 36 kobo. UPDC declined to N7.20 from N8.00, and C&I Leasing also settled at N7.20 from N8.00. Wema Bank closed at N20.70, down from N23.00.
Despite the market downturn, insurance stocks remained the most actively traded, led by Universal Insurance, AIICO Insurance, Linkage Assurance, Mutual Benefits Assurance, and Regency Assurance.
Trading activity was robust, with 2.46 billion shares exchanged in 43,515 deals, valued at N22.22 billion. The high volume in insurance counters underscored continued investor interest in the sector despite price corrections.
Week-to-date, the market has lost 0.27 percent, with equal sessions of gains and declines. Analysts expect mixed sentiment to persist in the near term as investors weigh opportunities for bargain hunting against the potential for further profit-taking.