Investors stake N13.5b inequities as indices dip by 0.2 per cent

At the close of transactions last week, a turnover of 1.28 billion shares worth N13.5 billion was recorded in 22,118 deals by investors on the floor of the exchange.

This volume of shares traded was, however, lower than 1.17 billion units, valued at N16.6 billion that was exchanged in 21,076 deals during the preceding week.

A breakdown of activities last week showed that the financial services industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 851.6 million shares valued at N7.5 billion traded in 11,930 deals, thus contributing 66 per cent to the total equities turnover.

The conglomerate industry was followed by 174.6 million units worth N569 million in 1,095 deals. The ICT industry ranked third with a turnover of 77.6 million units worth N2.25 billion in 1,458 deals.

Trading in the top three equities namely Fidelity Bank Plc, Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc and Access Holdings Plc (measured by volume) accounted for 426.6 million shares worth N1.8 billion in 3,307 deals, contributing 33.1 per cent and 13.1 per cent to the total equity turnover volume.

Further analysis of last week’s trading showed that bearish sentiments persisted in the local bourse for the third consecutive week as profit-taking activities dominated market performance with the benchmark index recording losses in three of the five trading sessions.

Precisely, the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) All-share index and market capitalisation depreciated by 0.2 per cent to close the week at 46,842.86 and N25,253 trillion respectively.

Notably, selloffs of Total Energies (-10.0 per cent), NB (-9.1 per cent), International Breweries (-8.1 per cent), GTCO (-7.1 per cent) and Zenith Bank (-7.1 per cent) drove the weekly loss.

Similarly, all other indices finished lower except NGX Premium, NGX Lotus II and NGX Sovereign bond indices which appreciated by 1.31 per cent, 1.38 per cent and 0.56 per respectively while NGX Asem and NGX Growth indices closed flat.

20 equities appreciated during the week, lower than 24 equities in the previous week. Fifty equities depreciated, higher than 44 equities in the previous week.

Reacting to market performance last week, analysts at Codros Capital said: “We expect the weak sentiments that dominated the local bourse this week to persist in the week ahead, as investors continue to scale down exposure to equities following the markdown of share prices for 2021FY dividends amidst expectations of an uptick in FI yields.

“Notwithstanding, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks as the unimpressive macro story remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings.”

Vetiva Dealing and Brokerage said: “The week closed out bearish as sell-side interest overshadowed demand, with trades in the banking sector elevating market activity despite the mixed sentiment in that space.

“We expect another mixed sectoral performance to start the new week amid further slight recoveries in the banking sector.”

A total of 4,448 units of exchange-traded products (ETPs), valued at N478,868.63 were traded this week in 23 deals compared to a total of 29,855 units valued at N3.5 million transacted last week in 11 deals.

Also, 35,517units valued at N39.3 million were traded last week in 16 deals compared with a total of 10,273 units valued at N10.5 million transacted last week in five deals.