Equities Investors Gain N310bn as NGX Index Climbs by 0.35%

Equities Investors Gain N310bn as NGX Index Climbs by 0.35%

Equities investors gained N310 billion on Wednesday as trading activities on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) platform rebound from previous selloffs.

Due to bargain hunting on some bellwether companies, the Nigerian stock market grew by 0.35 per cent on Thursday, translating to a gain of N310 billion for investors.

The positive performance was driven by increased bargain hunting and investors interest in stocks like: Chellaram, Austin Laz, The Initiate, Sovereign Trust Insurance, Aradel Holdings and 23 others.

Specifically, market capitalisation, which opened at N89.555 trillion, added N310 billion to close at N89.865 trillion. Similarly, the All-Share Index soared by 0.35 per cent or 489.45 points, settling at 142,036.23 compared with 141,546.78 recorded on Tuesday.

However, the market breadth closed negative with 32 losers against 28 gainers. Guinea Insurance led the losers’ table by 9.70 per cent, settling at N1.49 while Cornerstone Insurance fell by 8.68 per cent, ending the session at N6.52 per share.

Legend Internet dipped by 7.27 per cent, closing at N5.10 and Deap Capital Management shed by 7.06 per cent, finishing at N1.58 per share. Similarly, Thomas Wyatt Nigeria declined by 6.49 per cent, closing at N2.45 per share.

Conversely, Chellaram led the advancers’ table by 9.77 per cent, ending the session by N14.60, followed by Austin Laz which will increase by 9.67 per cent, finishing at N2.95 per share.

The Initiates rose by 8.08 per cent, settling at N12.97 and Sovereign Trust Insurance climbed by 7.37 per cent, closing at N3.06 per share. Also, Aradel Holdings soared by 6.97 per cent, ending the session at N583 per share.

Analysis of the market activity revealed a decline in the deals with improvements in the value and volume, as 1million shares valued at N24.7 billion were traded across 23,281 transactions.

This is compared with 414.9 million shares worth N12.95 billion that was exchanged in 25,386 deals earlier on Tuesday. Abbey Mortgage Bank topped the activity chart with 401.1 million shares valued at N2.7 billion.

This is followed by Fidelity Bank with 254.8 million shares worth N5.3 billion, while United Bank for Africa traded 23.2 million shares valued at N1.1 billion.

FirstHoldCo transacted 22.5 million shares worth N699.6 milllion and Access Corporation sold 17.5 million shares valued at N473.9 million. Fitch Downgrades France to ‘A+’ with Stable Outlook