Market News

By Helen Oji

The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) sustained its positive momentum at the start of February, with the NGX all-share index gaining 1.4 per cent Week-on-Week (w/w) to close at 105,933.03 points.

This upward movement resulted in the market capitalisation rising by approximately N883.5 billion, bringing the total to N65.59 trillion. Consequently, the year-to-date return stands at 2.92 per cent.

Investor sentiment remained strong, fueled by expectations of solid corporate earnings and the upcoming release of January 2025 consumer price index (CPI) data under the revised methodology.

A look at the performance of listed firms showed robust financial performance and resilience across various sectors. For instance, Oando Plc’s revenue rose by 45 per cent to N4.1 trillion in 2024, up from N2.9 trillion in 2023.

Its profit after tax also increased by nine per cent to N65.5 billion, compared to N60.28 billion in the previous year. FCMB Group Plc’s unaudited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024, showed gross earnings of N794.8 billion, representing a 53.9 per cent increase from N516.4 billion in the previous year while profit before tax (PBT) rose to N117.2 billion, reflecting a substantial growth from N91.8 billion reported in the prior year.

The bank’s PAT for the Group also increased by 16 per cent to N107.9 billion, up from N93.02 billion in the previous year. For UAC of Nigeria Plc, its operating profit hit N2 billion in Q4 2023, a significant turnaround from the N3.1 billion operating loss recorded in Q4 2022.

Last week, trading activity was robust, with all five sessions closing in the green. Weekly trading volume surged by 25.8 per cent to 4.08 billion units, while trading value jumped 82.7 per cent w/w to N126.43 billion.

The number of deals also rose by 12.8 per cent to 87,162 trades, reflecting heightened market participation.Across sectors, five of the six tracked indices posted gains, with the NGX Banking Index leading at +4.66 per cent, followed by NGX Insurance (1.61 per cent), NGX Commodity (1.29 per cent), NGX Industrial (+0.85 per cent) and NGX Oil & Gas (0.56 per cent). The NGX Consumer Goods Index was the sole loser, dipping 0.6 per cent w/w, weighed down by price declines in Dangote Sugar, Tantalizers, Nigerian Breweries, and May & Baker.

Investor interest was particularly strong in UPDC, Eterna, International Energy Insurance (INTENEGINS), FBNH, Sovereign Trust Insurance, Betaglas, AccessCorp, Okomu Oil, Presco and Oando.

UPDC led the week’s top gainers with a 38.5 per cent increase, followed by Eterna (32.8 per cent), INTENEGINS (29.5 per cent), Cadbury (26.6 per cent) and Fidson (24.4 per cent).

On the downside, Sunu Assurance (-12.9 per cent), UPL (-10 per cent), Multiverse (-10 per cent), Scoa (-9.8 per cent) and Tripple G (-9.7 per cent) recorded the biggest losses.

The financial services industry dominated trading activity this week, leading in volume with 2.2 billion shares worth N52.2 billion exchanged across 33,724 deals. This accounted for 74.per cent of the total equity turnover of the total value.

Following closely, the consumer goods industry recorded 141.684 million shares traded, valued at N4 billion across 7,218 deals. The industrial goods industry ranked third, with a turnover of 104.862 million shares worth N3.300 billion in 3,995 deals.

Notably, Access Holdings Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, and Zenith Bank Plc led trading by volume, with a combined 1.176 billion shares valued at N38.5 billion across 9,506 deals. These three stocks contributed 38.6 per cent and 39 per cent to total equity turnover volume and value, respectively.

In the fixed-income segment, a total of 53,950 units of exchange-traded products (ETPs) worth N5.104 million were traded across 58 deals, a decline from the previous week’s 204,935 units valued at N8.051 million in 121 deals.

Similarly, 37,219 units of bonds worth N28.751 million were exchanged in 42 deals, down from 377,375 units worth N401.924 million recorded last week across 44 deals.

Analysts at Cordros Capital said the bullish trend is expected to persist, driven by the release of additional Q4 earnings reports that could provide insights into dividend payouts.

Meanwhile, macroeconomic data and key economic developments will continue to influence investor sentiment this week with market participants closely monitoring corporate disclosures and broader economic indicators.

Corroborating, Cordros Capital said the bullish momentum is expected to continue next week (this week), fueled by the release of new corporate earnings and dividend announcements. Investor sentiment is likely to remain positive, with a focus on stocks demonstrating strong financial performance.