The Nigerian stock market wrapped up the week on a mixed note Friday, with gains in market capitalisation contrasting a continued slide in the benchmark index.
Market capitalisation rose by N130 billion, or 0.19 per cent, closing at N68.751 trillion, up from Thursday’s N68.621 trillion. This increase was largely driven by the listing of additional shares by United Bank for Africa (UBA) on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX).
However, the All-Share Index (ASI) told a different story, slipping by 154.40 points or 0.14 per cent to close at 109,028.62. This marks the third straight day of losses, down from the previous close of 109,183.02.
Despite the drop in the ASI, the overall market sentiment was slightly upbeat, as 30 stocks recorded gains compared to 22 that declined.
Leading the pack of gainers was Red Star Express, which surged 10 per cent to close at N6.71. University Press followed closely, appreciating by 9.82 per cent to N4.36. Other notable gainers included ABC Transport, which rose 9.69 per cent to N2.49; McNicholas, up 9.05 per cent to N2.29; and Lasaco Assurance, which climbed 8.47 per cent to end the day at N2.69.
On the downside, Northern Nigeria Flour Mills led the losers’ chart, dropping 9.97 per cent to N118.70. Transcorp Hotel shed 9.95 per cent to close at N138.50, while Learn Africa lost 9.89 per cent to finish at N4.01. Legend Internet fell by 9.52 per cent to N7.60, and Sovereign Trust Insurance slipped 8.57 per cent to 96kobo.
Trading activity was relatively subdued, with a total of 637.54 million shares valued at N18.122 billion exchanged in 15,927 deals. This was lower compared to the previous session’s 1.65 billion shares worth N19.098 billion in 26,176 deals.
Tantalizer emerged as the most traded stock by volume, with 145.08 million shares worth N384.45 million changing hands. Fidelity Bank followed with 85.57 million shares valued at N1.56 billion, while Nigerian Breweries recorded trades of 47.53 million shares worth N2.57 billion. Guaranty Trust Holding Company and UBA also saw significant activity, trading 29.38 million shares worth N2.05 billion and 45.14 million shares valued at N1.54 billion respectively.
Speaking on the market’s performance, Aruna Kebira, Managing Director of Globalview Capital Ltd., attributed the divergence between the market capitalisation and the ASI to UBA’s newly listed shares.
“The gap between the rise in market capitalisation and the drop in the All-Share Index is due to the listing of 6.8 billion units from UBA’s rights issue, which pushed its outstanding shares from 34.199 billion to 41.039 billion,” he explained.
Kebira added that the dip in the ASI was expected. “The market has been on a bullish run for some time. What we’re seeing now is a normal round of profit-taking, especially in stocks that had already been marked down for dividends and scrip issues,” he said
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