Portfolio managers and other stakeholders in the Nigerian capital market are at a crossroads following the continuous losses suffered by listed equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) since the beginning of the second quarter.
In the week that just ended, the market capitalisation of listed stocks closed at N14.66 trillion last Friday, as against N14.86 trillion recorded in the previous week. In effect, equity investors lost a whopping N199.2 billion in just last week alone, a development that is not different from the general market trend since the beginning of the second quarter of 2018. Month to date, the market capitalisation of listed stocks was lower by N288.2 billion.
The All Share Index(ASI) closed at 40,472.45 points when transactions ended last week as against 41,022.31 points recorded in the previous week. Week to date, the ASI closed lower at -1.34 percent while year to date, market returns stands at 5.83 percent which is almost at the same level as the market return a year ago. On May 19 2017 which is a date equivalent to last week Friday, the ASI returned 4.61 percent.
The NSE Premium Index and NSE Pension Index sustained their stellar performance year to date. As at last week Friday, the NSE Premium Index closed at 2,920.40 points representing 13.89 percent returns year to date. Also, the NSE Pension Index returned 12.73 percent year to date as it closed at 1,555.38 points last Friday compared with 1,602.05 points last week Friday and 1,379.74 points on the last trading day of 2017.
The NSE Banking Index posted 7.93 percent returns year to date to close at 513.13 points last Friday as against 475.44 points on the last trading day of 2017. However, its year to date performance is abysmally lower when compared with 23 percent returns it posted same period last year.
Other sub sectoral indices underperformed the market of which the worst performing sub sectoral indices are the NSE ASeM which closed last week Friday at -11.85 percent and NSE Consumer Goods which closed at -0.11 percent.
Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN) tops the list of stocks that outperformed the market, as its share price appreciated by 152.6 percent year-to-date to close last week Friday at N24 per share. Caverton rose by 99.2 percent YTD to close at N2.57 per share. Unity Bank rose by 77.4 percent YTD to close at N0.94 percent, while FCMB and Beta Glass rose by 75.7 percent and 70.2 percent YTD to close at N2.60 and N87.35 per share respectively.
The worst performing stocks by share price appreciation are Niger Insurance, -58 percent; Africa Alliance Insurance, -60 percent; Courtville, -60 percent; FTN Cocoa, -60 percent and Multiverse, -60 percent.
