TRADING activities in the Nigerian stock market rebounded in the just-concluded week, driven by bank shares and leaving investors with N794 billion gain.
The stock market had witnessed a bearish sentiment in the previous week that left investors with an N1.452 trillion loss.
At the close of the week’s trading session, the equities market reversed last week’s loss with positive sentiment that saw the benchmark index and market capitalisation appreciate significantly.
The market capitalisation rose by 1.26 per cent week-on-week to close at N63.65 trillion on Friday, January 24 from N62.85 trillion the market opened on Monday, January 20.
Similarly, the All-Share Index rose by 1.22 per cent week-on-week to close at 103,598.30 points from 102,353.68 points in the review week.
The upward trajectory was buoyed by strong investor sentiment, underpinned by anticipation of companies’ fourth-quarter earnings releases, and the ongoing adjustments in portfolio rebalancing.
These factors have begun to shape investor expectations for the end-of-year financial performance of listed companies as well as the supplementary listing of LASACO Assurance’s 9.25 billion ordinary shares on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), market analysts said.
Amid a mixed sectoral performance, the banking index emerged as the best-performing sector, with a 4.09 per cent rise to 1,160.88 points.
Key stocks that buoyed the banking stocks include the shares of Fidelity Bank and United Bank for Africa (UBA).
Besides the recorded gains, other indices that declined were the insurance Index dropping by -1.20 per cent to 730.95 followed by the consumer goods index which dipped by 1.20 per cent to 1,739.35 points and -0.93 per cent to 2,642.83 points.
Scoa Nigeria share topped the gainers table, gaining N1.48 to close at N3.96. UACN Property Development Company followed with a 32k gain to N2.00, and Coronation Insurance came third with a 0.34k gain to close at N2.56.
Meanwhile, notable stocks that appreciated during the week in review were Transnational Corporation which gained N5.05 to close at N52 and Guinness Nigeria which gained N7 to close at N77.
On the reverse, Sunu Assurances Nigeria topped the losers’ table with an N-1.68 loss to close at N5.01 closed in the red included
Cornerstone Insurance, Honeywell Flour Mills, Dangote Sugar Refinery, Aradel Holdings, and Eterna Oil. Their losses were largely driven by sell-offs in their stocks.
A total turnover of 3.132 billion shares worth N76.55 billion in 61,456 deals was traded in the review week by investors on the floor of NGX compared to a total of 2.252 billion shares valued at N58.83 billion that exchanged hands in 63,657 deals in the previous week.
Wema Bank, Secure Electronic Technology, and Access Holdings, measured by volume, accounted for 1.437 billion shares worth N15.41 billion in 5,292 deals and contributed 89 per cent and 20.13 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value.
Analysts at Cowry Asset Management believe that the current positive market sentiment is expected to persist into the coming week, supported by the release of corporate earnings and anticipated corporate actions.
“The results published so far have been encouraging, providing a foundation for sustained price support and attracting fresh capital inflows into the market.
“Moreover, the prevailing low valuation of many stocks continues to create opportunities for investors to buy into value and strategically reposition their portfolios. However, the market may experience bouts of volatility as the earnings season progresses,” the analysts stated in their weekly report.
Looking ahead they said mixed macroeconomic data and upcoming economic events are likely to influence market sentiment, particularly for companies with December year-end financials.
