Nigerian Equities Market Cap Drops by N543bn to N160.73trn
The Nigerian equities market capitalisation dropped by N534 billion to N160/73 trillion over the last five trading sessions, with mixed sentiment ahead of third-quarter earnings releases.
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) ended last week negative, as renewed sell-offs in selected stocks weighed on overall market performance.
Accordingly, the benchmark NGX All-Share Index (ASI) declined by 0.33% week-on-week (WoW) to close at 247,539.73 points, while market capitalisation decreased by approximately N534 billion to N160.73 trillion.
The bears’ successive strikes dragged that year-to-date (YTD) return on the Exchange down to 59.07%. Despite the benchmark index’s decline, market breadth remained positive, with 49 gainers versus 29 decliners.
Hence, the market breadth ratio closed at 1.69x, indicating that risers outnumbered decliners in the stock market last week.
Trading activity also weakened during the week, as the number of deals, trading volume, and transaction value declined by 12.10%, 38.91%, and 38.00% , Cowry Asset Management Limited said in its weekly update.
Overall, investors traded 1.66 billion shares valued at N160.73 billion across 184,919 deals.
Sectoral performance on the Nigerian Exchange closed the week on a mixed note, reflecting divergent investor positioning across key sectors and pointing to a market characterised by selective accumulation and profit-taking rather than broad-based buying, Cowry Asset said
The Oil and Gas sector’s uptrend provided some support, while weakness in major banking counters weighed on sentiment in the financial sector.
Stockbrokers said sharp gains in selected Consumer and Industrial Goods stocks suggest that stock-specific opportunities continued to attract investor attention, even as losses in several large-cap counters constrained broader market momentum.
The Oil and Gas sector led the gainers with a 3.13% advance, supported by buying interest in Aradel and ETERNA, which offset losses in OANDO.
The Consumer Goods sector followed with a marginal 0.09% gain, driven by strong rallies in MULTITREX and GUINNESS alongside INTBREW.
However, declines in NASCON, PZ and DANGSUGAR tempered the sector’s advance, highlighting the uneven performance of consumer-facing stocks.
Meanwhile, the Industrial Goods sector closed flat, as gains in AUSTINLAZ and CUTIX were insufficient to generate a broader upward movement.
The sector’s muted performance suggests a balance between selective buying interest and subdued activity across other constituent stocks.
Conversely, the Banking sector recorded the steepest decline, shedding 3.15% as investors took profits in major banking stocks, with ZENITHBANK, GTCO and FIRSTHOLDCO leading the losses.
These declines outweighed gains in ETI and FIDELITYBK, underscoring the pressure on some of the market’s heavyweight financial stocks.
The Insurance sector also closed lower, shedding 0.14%, as declines in AIICO, CORNEREST and MANSARD offset advances in FTGINSURE, LINKASSURE and WAPIC.
Despite the strong performances of selected insurance stocks, gains were insufficient to lift the sector into positive territory.
LIVESTOCK led the gainers’ chart, appreciating by 44.5% during the week. ETRANZACT followed with a gain of 43.0%, while AUSTINLAZ, OMATEK, and FTGINSURE advanced by 32.7%, 19.4%, and 13.1%, respectively.
UPDCREIT recorded the steepest decline, shedding 11.9% over the week. ENAMELWA followed with a loss of 10.0%, while NASCON, TRANSEXPR, and LIVINGTRUST declined by 9.5%, 9.1%, and 8.4%, respectively.
Cowry Asset Limited expects the Nigerian equities market to remain cautious amid prevailing selling pressure and subdued trading activity. However, bargain hunting in fundamentally sound stocks and sustained interest in the Oil and Gas and Commodity sectors could support market performance.
Overall, market direction is likely to depend on investor sentiment, sectoral performance, and reactions to corporate earnings and macroeconomic developments, the investment firm told investors in its market review. Nigerian Exchange Loses N109bn as GTCO, UBA, Zenith Bank Dip
