Stock Market Sees N266bn Loss Amid Profit-Taking in BUA Cement and Other Stocks

The Nigerian stock market experienced a decline of N266 billion on the back of profit-taking, particularly in BUA Cement, which saw a 10% drop, alongside other major stocks. As a result, the Nigerian Exchange Limited All-Share Index (NGX ASI) fell by 423.48 basis points, or 0.40%, closing at 105,375.69 points. This brought the Month-to-Date and Year-to-Date returns to -2.3% and +2.4%, respectively.

Sector performance was mixed, with the NGX Industrial Goods Index and Banking Index both registering losses, dropping by 3.4% and 0.7%, respectively. The Oil & Gas Index also experienced a slight dip of 0.1%. However, the NGX Insurance and Consumer Goods indices saw positive growth, increasing by 1.1% and 0.2%, respectively. Despite these losses, market breadth closed positive with 28 gainers versus 22 losers.

Among the top gainers were NEIMETH International Pharmaceuticals, which surged by 10%, followed by Northern Nigeria Flour Mills (NNFM) with a 9.99% rise, and Custodian Investment, which climbed by 9.69%. Meanwhile, BUA Cement led the losers with a 10% drop, followed by Ellah Lakes and Regency Alliance Insurance, which saw declines of 4.82% and 4.41%, respectively. Other notable losers included Wema Bank and Omatek Venture.

Trading volume decreased by 26.7% to 349.983 million units, valued at N8.221 billion. Activity was led by Access Holdings, which traded 36.757 million shares valued at N847.292 million, followed by Universal Insurance and Fidelity Bank. Analysts at Afrinvest Limited predict that the bearish momentum may persist due to the lack of positive market catalysts.

source: thisday