Investors gain N3.45trn in midweek equities rally

Investors on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) gained N3.45 trillion on Wednesday as renewed buying interest in blue-chip stocks lifted the equities market, extending its bullish. Market capitalisation rose by 2.27 per cent to N155.59 trillion from N152.14 trillion recorded in the previous session.

The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 5,376.70 basis points to close at 242,459.98 points from 237,083.28 points. The latest performance increased the market’s year-to-date return to 55.81 per cent.

The positive outing was driven by broad-based buying across most major sectors of the market, with investor sentiment remaining positive as gainers outnumbered losers. A total of 31 equities appreciated in price, while 21 closed lower, reflecting sustained demand for fundamentally strong stocks.

Sectoral performance was largely positive, with the Oil and Gas Index leading the gainers after rising by 3.85 per cent. The Commodity Index advanced by 2.54 per cent, followed by the Industrial Index with a 1.89 per cent gain, the Banking Index with 1.07 per cent and the Consumer Goods Index with 0.31 per cent. The Insurance Index was the only laggard, declining by 0.20 per cent.

Leading the gainers’ chart was TRANSEXPR, which appreciated by 10.00 per cent to close at N4.07 per share. It was followed by AIRTELAFRI, which also gained 10.00 per cent to close at N5,801.40 per share. FIDELITYBK advanced by 9.97 per cent to N34.75 per share, while THOMASWY rose by 9.89 per cent to N13.33 per share. ZICHIS completed the top five gainers, appreciating by 9.69 per cent to close at N5.66 per share.

On the losers’ chart, HMCALL recorded the biggest decline, shedding 9.95 per cent to close at N3.57 per share. MCNICHOLS followed with a loss of 8.89 per cent to N6.15 per share, while TRANSCORP fell by 5.65 per cent to close at N40.10 per share. CWG declined by 5.24 per cent to N19.90 per share, and VFDGROUP dropped 5.19 per cent to close at N102.50 per share.

Trading activity was mixed as investors exchanged 518.43 million shares, representing a 5.02 per cent increase from the previous session. However, the value of transactions declined by 18.80 per cent to N22.75 billion, while the number of deals fell by 2.95 per cent to 48,495 transactions.

LASACO led the activity chart by volume with 56.60 million shares traded, followed by FIDELITYBK with 47.46 million shares, LINKASSURE with 33.91 million shares, ZENITHBANK with 31.96 million shares and STERLINGNG with 30.48 million shares. By value, ARADEL accounted for the largest trades, followed by ZENITHBANK, WAPCO, AIRTELAFRI and MTNN.

Cowry Asset Management in its daily market review said it expects the market to sustain its recovery momentum, supported by continued investor repositioning and portfolio rebalancing.

“The market is expected to sustain its recovery momentum, underpinned by ongoing strategic investor repositioning and portfolio rebalancing,” the firm said.