Market Down 0.33% as Stock Investors Lose N106bn to Profit-Taking

By Dipo Olowookere

It was another bad day for the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited as the bears ran away with N106 billion from the market due to profit-taking by investors on Friday.

Business Post reports that the selling pressure witnessed on the week’s last trading session sank the bourse by 0.33 per cent at the close of transactions.

As a result, the exchange’s market capitalisation finished at N32.126 trillion compared with the previous day’s closing value of N32.232 trillion.

In the same vein, the All-Share Index (ASI) depreciated by 194.25 points to settle at 59,000.96 points, in contrast to Thursday’s 59,195.21 points.

The significant gains recorded on Tuesday and Wednesday further allowed traders to sell off some equities that have yielded short-term returns, resulting in 28 shares closing bullish, as 33 equities closed bearish, indicating a weak investor sentiment and a negative market breadth index.

NEM Insurance was the worst-performing stock yesterday as its value went down by 9.87 per cent to N6.30, Abbey Mortgage Bank depreciated by 9.52 per cent to N1.52, CWG slumped by 9.50 per cent to N1.62, John Holt plunged by 9.45 per cent to N1.15, and The Initiates shrank by 9.30 per cent to 39 Kobo.

The best-performing stock was Coronation Insurance, which improved its value by 10.00 per cent to 66 Kobo, FTN Cocoa rose by 9.76 per cent to N1.35, Transcorp Hotel moved up by 9.69 per cent to N14.60, RT Briscoe increased by 9.68 per cent to 34 Kobo, and Unity Bank appreciated by 9.68 per cent to N1.02.

During the session, investors exchanged 622.4 million stocks worth N6.5 billion in 9,417 deals compared with the 1.2 billion stocks worth N15.4 billion transacted in 12,611 deals on Thursday, representing a decline in the trading volume, value, and the number of deals by 46.81 per cent, 57.79 per cent, and 25.33 per cent apiece.

Living Trust Insurance topped the chart with a turnover of 103.4 million shares worth N278.2 million, UBA sold 46.3 million equities valued at N524.3 million, Access Holdings transacted 41.0 million stocks valued at N591.9 million, Zenith Bank exchanged 39.1 million shares for N1.2 billion, and Sterling Bank transacted 37.0 million equities worth N115.9 million.