Equity Investors Gain N4.23trn as NGX Index Hits Record High

Equity Investors Gain N4.23trn as NGX Index Hits Record High

Equity investors gained N4.23 trillion on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) as the all-share index hit a record high over sustained bargain hunting.

The Nigerian bourse reached a new 52-week high at 155,640.55 points, up 4.47% week-on-week amidst the third quarter of the year corporate earnings releases.

Nigerian stocks saw buying interest in mid- and large-cap blue-chip stocks as well as strategic sectoral reallocation by investors on the back of strong fundamentals.

The bargain hunting came amidst a flurry of impressive 9-month earnings scorecards published by corporates to rouse positive sentiments across counters.

The stock market capitalisation of listed equities expanded by 4.48% to N98.79 trillion, translating to an impressive N4.23 trillion gain for investors.

The All-Share Index (ASI) now boasts a year-to-date (YTD) return of 51.22%, underscoring the market’s resilience. Despite the overall positive sentiment, market breadth closed negative at 0.86x, with 42 gainers against 49 losers.

Trading activity, however, remained vibrant, as the number of deals surged by 16.76%. Also, total volume and total value of transactions surged.

Stockbrokers reported that sectoral performance was broadly positive, except for the NGX-Banking Index and NGX-Industrial Index, which dipped 1.35% and 1.10% week-on-week due to negative price movements.

Conversely, the Industrial Goods and Oil & Gas indices led the gainers, advancing 10.61% and 9.13%, respectively, from buying interest in BUACEM, DANGCEM, and ARADEL.

The Commodities and Consumer Goods sectors also posted strong gains of 4.87% and 3.97%, buoyed by renewed buying interest in tickers such as PZ, NASCON, BUAFOODS, DANGSUGAR and MECURE.

Top performers for the week included ARADEL (+25.2%), EUNISELL (+19.7%), PZ (+14.2%), NASCON (+12.8%), and BUA Cement (+12.5%), benefiting from sustained investor demand.

On the downside, LIVINGTRUST (-10.9%), JULI (-9.9%), RTBRISCOE (-9.8%), JOHNHOLT (-9.7%), and MULTIVERSE (-9.7%) emerged as the worst performers, largely due to profit-taking and weak investor sentiment.

Stock analysts at Cowry Research expect the market to trade on a positive note as investors react to the ongoing release of Q3 2025 corporate earnings and dividend declarations.

Strong results from bellwether companies and improved liquidity conditions are likely to sustain buying interest across major sectors as fundamentals improve.

However, bouts of profit-taking and portfolio rebalancing may introduce slight volatility, particularly in the banking space as investors rebalance their portfolios in line with current reality and expectations, Cowry Asset Limited said. Total Allocation to FG, States, LGs Rises by 50% in N16.45trn