- NSE Equities Capitalisation Drops by N234bn, 38 Stocks Fall
The Nigerian Stock Exchange equities market capitalisation dropped by N234bn on Thursday after 38 stocks slipped.
Fidelity Bank Plc, Japaul Oil & Maritime Services Plc, Unilever Nigeria Plc emerged as the worst-performing stocks, shedding 9.3 per cent, 8.7 per cent and 8.5 per cent, respectively.
The market closed on a negative note, extending losses from the previous session as the All-Share Index fell by 1.5 per cent to 42,185.38 basis points while the year-to-date return moderated to 10.3 per cent.
Investors dumped shares of Dangote Cement Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Zenith Bank Plc and Unilever as the worth of the shares went down accordingly by 2.3 per cent, 3.5 per cent, 3.9 per cent and 8.5 per cent.
Owing to these losses, which impacted negatively on the day’s performance, investors lost N234bn in value as equities capitalisation fell to N15.1tn. However, activity level was mixed as volume traded rose by 8.4 per cent to 404 million units while value traded fell by 11.9 per cent to N6bn.
The top-traded stocks by volume were Zenith (66.9 million), FBN Holdings Plc (48.4 million) and Regency Alliance Plc (41.2 million) while the top-traded by value were Zenith Bank (N1.9tn), GTBank (N591.8m) and FBN Holdings (N544.2m).
Following the negative sentiment that clouded the equities market, analysts at Afrinvest, in a post, said, “Despite the decline recorded on Thursday, we maintain our expectation for a rebound in market performance as we anticipate bargain hunting in blue chip stocks currently on a losing streak.”
Also, performance across sectors was largely negative as all the major NSE indices closed on negative notes except for the consumer goods index which gained 0.2 per cent, driven by gains in Nigerian Breweries Plc and Nestle Nigeria Plc, which rose respectively by 1.6 per cent and 1.1 per cent.
However, the banking index topped the losers’ chart as price depreciation in GTBank and Zenith Bank dragged the index down by 3.1 per cent. In the same vein, the oil/gas index fell by 1.9 per cent as a result of profit-taking in Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc and Mobil Nigeria Plc, which shed 2.2 per cent and four per cent, respectively.
The industrial goods and insurance indices fell by 1.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively, caused by losses in Dangote Cement Plc, Continental Reinsurance Plc and AXA Mansard Insurance Plc, which went down by 2.3 per cent, 4.8 per cent and 1.1 per cent, accordingly.
Investor sentiment stayed flat as 15 stocks advanced against 38 stocks that declined.
NPF Microfinance Bank Plc, Johnholt Nigeria Plc and Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc were the top gainers, advancing by 9.8 per cent, four per cent and 3.8 per cent, respectively.
