NGX Pops as BUA Cement, Banking Stocks Rally
Trading activities on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) gained momentum midweek as bargain hunting on BUA Cement Plc and tier-1 banking stocks pushed the market index upward ahead of the fourth quarter of 2022 earnings releases.
Stockholders gain N154 billion as the equities market index ticked up by 0.55% to close at 51,729.87 points amid sustained bargain-hunting activity seen in mid to large-cap stocks. Consequently, the year-to-date gain climbed to 0.93% as the local bourse recorded 26 gainers with 12 tickers topping the losers’ chart.
A breakdown of price movement showed that Thomas Wyatt Nigeria topped the gainers’ table with a gain of 9.48 per cent to close at N1.27 per share. Champion Breweries trailed with a gain of 9.45 per cent to close at N4.75 while FTN COCOA Processors rose by 7.69 per cent to close at 28k per share.
Mutual Benefits Assurance was up by 6.67 per cent to close at 32k, while Courteville Business Solutions increased by 6.52 per cent to close at 49k per share. Conversely, Challerams Plc led the losers’ table, dropping by 9.89 per cent to close at N1.64 per share.
Royal Exchange Assurance followed with a loss of 7.41 per cent to close at N1, while WAPIC Assurance declined by 6.54 per cent to close at 42k per share. AXA Mansard decreased by 6.54 per cent to close at N2, while RT Briscoe fell by 3.57 per cent to close at 27k per share.
Specifically, the NGX Industrial index closed in green, gaining 1.48%, following buy interest on BUA CEMENT whose share price gained 3.57%. In addition, stockbrokers said tier 1 banks were toast of investors today, with share prices of ACCESSCORP, GTCO, UBA, and ZENITH BANK rising by 1.67%, 1.48%, 1.25%, and 0.21%, respectively.
Stock market performance was bullish across sub-sector gauges tracked as three of the five indices closed in the green zone, and the NGX Banking, Insurance, and Consumer Goods indices advanced by 1.05%, 0.15%, and 1.48%, respectively.
The NGX Insurance index fell by 0.67% due to profit-taking in ROYALEX (-7.41%), WAPIC (-6.67%), and MANSARD (-6.54%), while the NGX Oil/Gas index finished flat. In 2022, the insurance sector recorded negative performance over a 12-month period.
The total volume traded declined by 18.4% to 281.94 million units, valued at N8.16 billion, and exchanged in 3,679 deals. In terms of volume, FBNH was the most active stock, with 108.93 million shares worth N1.22 billion changing hands in 126 deals. # NGX Pops as BUA Cement, Banking Stocks Rally