NSE Opens Soft as Equities Investors Continue to Stay Cautious
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) opened the week on a softer note as investors continue to stay cautious amidst the EndSARS protest.
Sentiments in Nigeria’s equity market started with a bearish bias as the NSE All-Share Index closed largely flat to 28,658.31 points.
The combination of profit-taking from the significant gains recorded last Friday (+111bps), together with the unrelenting social unrest across the federation, must have prompted investors to sit on the fence.
Thus, the year to date return and market capitalisation was unchanged at 6.77% and N14.980 trillion, respectively.
The trio of International Breweries Plc (+9.94% to N5.86), Ikeja Hotel Plc (+9.90% to N1115), and Cutix Plc (+9.88% to N1.78) were top gaining stocks.
Meanwhile, Eterna Plc (-8.98% to N4.28), May & Baker Plc (-7.69% to N3.00), and Academy Plc (-6.90% to N0.27) were today’s top losers.
Chapel Hill Denham said performance across its coverage universe was mixed, with 3 of 5 of coverage indices closing in the green.
Specifically, the NSE insurance, NSE oil & gas, and NSE consumer goods indices closed positive, gaining 109bps, 54bps, and 88bps, respectively.
Nonetheless, analysts said the foregoing was offset by losses across the NSE Banking and NSE industrial goods indices, both of which dipped by 34bps and 14bps, respectively.
Meanwhile, the market’s activity was broadly weak, with volume and value traded declining by 41.26% and 28.00% to 287mn units and N3.399bn, respectively.
Yesterday’s most traded stocks by volume were Zenith Bank Plc (43.00mn units), UBA Plc (41.76mn units), and First Bank of Nige-ria Plc (32.76mn units).
On the other hand, the top traded stocks by value are Zenith Bank Plc (N0.905bn), Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (0.822bn), and UBA Plc (N0.299bn).
The Chapel Hill Denham’s Paramount Equity Fund (PEF) and the Women Investment Fund (WIF) both notched higher by 2.01% and 2.84%, respectively.
Read Also: IFC Invests $100 million in Zenith Bank to Support SMEs
NSE Opens Soft as Equities Investors Continue to Stay Cautious
