After reaching an all-time high of 66,490.34 basis points, Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) broke the record again at the close of trading on Monday as its NGX All-Share Index (ASI) rose by 1.11 per cent to close at 68,279.14 basis points, surpassing the highest value of 66,371.20 basis points recorded on the Exchange on March 5, 2008.
This performance was in part, attributed to a surge in banking stocks (Zenith and GTCO) as investors strategically positioned themselves, taking advantage of the recent record earnings posted by some banks at the weekend as well as demand in BUA Foods.
Consequently, market capitalisation gained N411 billion to close at N37.369 trillion from N36.958 trillion. Accordingly, the market’s year-to-date (YTD) return peaked at 33.22 per cent.
Sectorally, the performance of the market counters was mixed.
The Banking Index (+5.65 per cent) led the market owing to gains in Zenith Bank and GTCO. The Consumer Goods Index (+1.57 per cent) also gained while Insurance (-2.81 per cent), and Industrial Index (-0.14 per cent) recorded losses. The NGX Oil and Gas Index remained unchanged.
Activity levels were high as the volume of stocks traded rose by 67.88 per cent to 845.680 million units while the value of stocks traded increased by 88.56 per cent to close at N13.03 billion, in 11,934 deals. This is against 503.74 million units and N6.91 billion which exchanged hands in 7,606 deals in the previous session.
Zenith Bank was top on the activity chart with the sale of 75.411 million shares valued at N2.79 billion. GTCO followed with the sale of 54.80 million shares worth N2.20 billion while Dangote Sugar transacted 20.85 shares valued at N1.38 billion.
Market breadth closed positive, with 38 stocks appreciating while 19 stocks depreciated. Dangote Sugar led the pack of gainers with a remarkable 10 per cent increase in stock value. Conversely, Chip Plc led the group of 19 declining securities, with a 9.57 per cent decrease in stock value.
Reacting to the performance of the market, analysts attributed this strong performance to recent corporate actions while stating that investors will continue to cherry-pick fundamentally sound stocks. They said, “However, we acknowledge the possibility of profit-taking activities on stocks that have experienced notable appreciation in recent weeks. Notwithstanding, we opine that investors should seek trading opportunities in fundamentally sound stocks as the weak macroeconomic environment remains a significant headwind to corporate earnings”.
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