By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange further gained on Monday, June 1 as the market barometers rose by 0.33 percent spurred by the market bellwether and the only price gainer at the session, Niger Delta Exploration and Production (NDEP) Plc.
The oil and gas company pushed the exchange higher as its share price increased yesterday by 8.59 percent or N26.12 kobo to close at N304.00 per unit compared with N277.88 per share it ended last Friday.
The positive performance of the stock supported the N1.66 billion gained by the market capitalisation yesterday, closing at 509.58 billion in contrast to N507.92 billion it finished previously.
In the same vein, it boosted the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) by 2.25 points to 693.71 points from 691.46 points it recorded at the previous session.
During the trading session, the total volume of shares transacted by investors rose by 827 percent to 1.5 million units from 164,900 units recorded at the preceding session.
These came from 13 deals executed at the session from four stocks belonging to FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc (six deals); Central Securities Clearing Systems (CSCS) Plc and Afriland Properties Plc (three deals each) and NDEP Plc (two deals).
These transactions amounted to N26.3 million in value compared to N48.8 million achieved last Friday, indicating a decline by 46 percent. It was observed that NDEP contributed a large chunk of total trading value yesterday, N9.24 million.
At the close of business, ARM Life Plc closed the session as the company with the highest volume of traded stocks (year-to-date), transacting 7.4 billion units of its shares worth N4.6 billion. It was trailed by CSCS Plc, which has traded 195.6 million units worth N2.6 billion so far this year, and Food Concept Plc, which has exchanged 110 million units of its shares worth N77 million.
On the value (year-to-date) chart, ARM Life Plc also held the top spot for transacting 7.4 billion units of its shares worth N4.6 billion. CSCS Plc maintained the second spot with 195.6 million units exchanged for N2.6 billion, while NDEP Plc occupied the third place with 7.2 million units of its securities valued at N2.2 billion.
Dipo Olowookere