By Abibat Aliu
The bulls strengthened their hold on the equities sector of the Nigerian capital market, yesterday, as gains in Airtel Africa, Nigerian Breweries and 16 others lifted capitalisation by N257 billion.
At the close of the transaction, the all-share-index (ASI) rose by 470.74 points, representing an increase of 0.92 per cent to close at 51,693.08 points. Also, the overall market capitalisation value gained N257 billion to close at N28.156 trillion.
The upturn was impacted by gains recorded in medium and large capitalised stocks, amongst which are; Airtel Africa, Nigerian Breweries, United Capital, Nigerian Exchange Group (NGXGroup) and Africa Prudential.
Analysts at United Capital Plc anticipated that the bears would resume activities across counters, as investors book profits from the extended rally.
According to United Capital, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recent Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) debits in the money market would likely discourage investors from sustaining investment in equities in the short term as they foresee improvement in money market yields.
“However, we see any downturn as a short-term buying opportunity as we expect investors’ risk-on sentiments will linger through Q1,2023, favouring the equities market, as the prevailing downward pressure interest rates will persist through the quarter.”
Vetiva Dealing and Brokerage said: “As expected, the week started with some profit taking especially in the banking sector, while today’s positive performance was largely due to the rebound in AIRTELAFRI. We anticipate a bearish close tomorrow, as investors continue to take profit.”
Market sentiment, as measured by market breadth, was positive as 18 stocks gained, relative to 16 losers. Thomas Wyatt Nigeria recorded the highest price gain of 9.28 per cent to close at N1.06 kobo while Associated Bus Company followed with a gain of eight per cent to close at 27 kobo. Royal Exchange rose by 5.88 per cent to close at N1.08 kobo.
Airtel Africa went up by 5.16 per cent to close at N1,630, while consolidated Hallmark Insurance appreciated by five per cent to close at 63 kobo.
On the other hand, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) led the losers’ chart by 8.63 per cent to close at N6.35 kobo. Wema Bank followed with a decline of 8.21 per cent to close at N3.58 kobo while AIICO Insurance depreciated by 6.25 per cent to close at 60 kobo.
Caverton Offshore Support Group declined by 4.95 per cent to close at 96 kobo. Stanbic IBTC Holdings also depreciated by 4.33 per cent to close at N32.
Also, the total volume of trades rose by 17.10 per cent to 229.219 million units, valued at N2.908 billion, and exchanged in 3,900 deals.
Transactions in the shares of Sterling Bank topped the activity chart with 85.178 million shares valued at N119.255 million. United Bank for Africa (UBA) followed with 21.623 million shares worth N173.308 million, while FBN Holdings (FBNH) traded 20.09 million shares valued at N222.86 million.
Access Holdings traded 10.325 million shares valued at N95.528 million, while Zenith Bank transacted 8.29 million shares worth N202.48 million.
