NGX Down By N67bn as Banks, Insurance Stocks Plunge
It was a selling festival again at the equities market on Thursday as bears extended their grip on the local exchange for three out of four trading sessions. Data from the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) showed that market capitalisation went down due to selloffs in banking stocks, specifically.
Consequent to another bearish close, stockbrokers said in their market reports that performance indicators dipped by -0.18%, forcing a slowdown in year-to-date return to 30.89%. Still, year-to-date return remained far ahead of an annual inflation rate of 26.72%.
In its update, Atlass Portfolios Limited said the market downturn was due to profit-taking in the financial sector while market breadth was largely negative. According to data from the Nigerian bourse, the market index or the All-Share Index reduced by 121.21 basis points, representing a decline of -0.18% to close at 67,084.95.
However, market activities were mixed, stockbrokers said in their separate reports. The total volume traded inched lower by -18.81%, while the total value traded increased by +15.88%. Approximately 267.65 million units valued at ₦5,110.97 million were transacted in 5,205 deals, Atlass Portfolios Limited stated, citing data from the domestic bourse.
FIDELITYBK was the most traded stock in terms of volume, accounting for 14.91% of the total volume of trades. The Tier-2 bank was followed by CHAMS (8.80%), ACCESSCORP (7.70%), UBA (7.12%), and JAPAULGOLD (6.83%) to complete the top 5 on the volume chart.
NESTLE was the most traded stock in value terms, with 34.22% of the total value of trades on the exchange. MCNICHOLS topped the advancers’ chart with a price appreciation of 8.93 per cent, trailed by UACN (6.09%), OANDO (+4.97%), CHAMS (+3.65%), NESTLE (+2.94%), and seven others.
Twenty eight stocks depreciated, according to trading recorded from the domestic exchange. NSLTECH was the top loser, with a price depreciation of -10.00%. INTBREW shed 9.78% of its market valuation, FTNCOCOA lost 8.24% and the market price of CORNERST declined by 6.08%.
There was negative price movement in FLOURMILL, down by 3.23% and ZENITHBANK tumbled by 0.75%. Other losers include GTCO (-1.55%), STANBIC (3.21%), FIDELITYBK (-1.82%) and MTN (0.40%). Based on the trading pattern observed, the market breadth closed negative, recording 12 gainers and 28 losers.
Also, the market sector performance was negative. As such, two of the five major market sectors closed in red. The Insurance sector tumbled by 1.82%, and the Banking sector lost 0.33% while the Consumer goods sector was up by +0.12%. The Oil & Gas and Industrial sectors closed flat.
Overall, equities market capitalisation lost ₦66.59 billion on Thursday, representing a drop of -0.18%, to close at ₦36.86 trillion from ₦36.92 trillion yesterday. #NGX Down By N67bn as Banks, Insurance Stocks Plunge #IPPIS: FG to Delist Unverified Workers on Oct. 27
