The value of Nigerian equities market increased further by 0.17 percent yesterday as bargain hunters see value in low priced stocks.
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All Share Index (ASI) closed at 34,355.31points against the preceding trading day level of 34,298.64 points.
Analysts noted that despite profit-taking in some counters on the back of recent gains, the bull activities pushed Market Capitalisation high at N11.67trn against preceding level of N11.65trn, adding in excess of N2bn.
The Year-to-Date (YtD) return of the stock market stood at -0.87 percent.
Beta Glass Company plc led the gainers’ table after its share price rose by N1.87, from N38.1 to N39.97; followed by Presco plc which garnered N1, from N31 to N32.
Mobil Oil Nigeria plc also rallied by N0.5, from N150 to N150.5; Red Star Express plc rose from N5 to N5.35, adding N0.35, while National Salt Company of Nigeria plc appreciated from N7.4 to N7.75, adding N0.35.
“Slowdown in the positive momentum seen in yesterday’s session indicates knock-on impact of prior speculative trading, in our view. Therefore, we advise investors continue to play the market with caution, with more focus on stocks with sound fundamentals,” research analysts at Lagos-based United Capital plc said yesterday.
Volume of stocks traded yesterday decreased by 44.4 percent from 557.61 million to 309.72 million, while the total value of stock traded increased by 0.03 percent from N3.71bn to N3.71bn in 5,386 deals. The stock market recorded 31 gainers against 15 losers.
Nestle Nigeria plc led the losers table after its share price declined by N11, from N871 to N860; while Dangote Cement plc followed after shedding N1, from N179 to N178. Union Bank of Nigeria plc declined by N0.34, from N10.51 to N10.17; University Press plc dipped from N6 to N5.7, losing N0.3.
The Financial Services sector led the activity chart with 247.262 million shares exchanged for N1.51bn. Services followed with 26.246 million shares traded for N36m.
Mansard Insurance plc, Sterling Bank plc, Learn Africa, United Bank for Africa plc, and FBN Holdings plc where the actively traded stocks on the nations bourse.
Crude oil future prices gave up yesterday morning’s gains as the dollar’s recovery from early losses outweighed expectations of a draw on U.S. oil stocks. July Brent crude fell $1.11 to $62.61 a barrel by 12:45 p.m. (1645 GMT), while U.S. crude was down 23 cents at $57.80 a barrel. Oil prices had fallen nearly 3 percent on the previous day, pressured by a strong rally in the dollar.
