AustinLaz & Company Plc has disclosed that its Chief Executive Officer and major shareholder, Asimonye Austin Lazarus Azubuike, sold 52,238,727 shares valued at N227.7 million.
The sale was disclosed in a director’s dealings filing submitted to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) and signed by the company secretary, Ifeanyi Offor & Associates.
According to the filing, the transaction, identified by code NGAUSTINLAZ9, was carried out in 11 tranches between 19 December 2025 and 6 January 2026 on the NGX.
The disclosure comes after a strong year for AustinLaz shares in 2025, when the stock gained 134%, rising from N1.82 at the start of the year to close at N4.25.
The shares were sold in 11 separate tranches, with prices ranging from N2.42 to N5.64 per share, averaging N4.36 each, for a total of 52,238,727 units.
Before the sale, Dr Austin Asimonye owned 542,000,000 shares, equivalent to a 50.19% stake, making him the company’s largest shareholder.
After completing the recent transaction, his holdings slipped to 489,761,273 units, reducing his stake to 45.35% while cashing out N227.7 million.
Other significant shareholders with holdings above 5% include Arin Labs Int’l Ltd, Unibake Limited, and Resort Securities Limited, each holding 100,000,000 units, equivalent to 9.26% apiece.
Looking at the company’s performance, AustinLaz delivered its strongest annual stock growth in 2025 on NGX, returning 134%, with over 104 million shares traded during the year.
However, recent selling has dragged AustinLaz shares down 6.35% to N3.98 as of 16 January 2026, likely presenting a potential entry point for value-focused investors.
For the nine-month period ended September 2025, the company reported no revenue, compared with N872.9 million recorded in the prior year from its aluminum and ice plant segments.
Administrative expenses stood at N11.1 million, resulting in a pre-tax loss of N11.1 million, compared with a profit of N1.01 million in the corresponding period of the previous year.
Despite weak operating performance, the balance sheet showed improvement, with total assets of N1.4 billion, largely comprising property, plant, and equipment.
On the equity side, the company rebounded to retained earnings of N39 million, compared with a loss of N468.2 million in the same period of the prior year.
A significant portion of the stock’s 2025 rally came in December, when shares surged over 80% from the November low of N2.36 to above N4.00, despite muted nine-month performance.
The CEO’s partial divestment follows a sharp run-up in AustinLaz shares, suggesting profit-taking after the stock’s best-ever annual performance.
The CEO’s partial divestment follows a sharp run-up in AustinLaz shares, suggesting profit-taking after the stock’s best-ever annual performance.
While the recent sell-off has pressured the share price, it has also created a pullback that could attract value-oriented investors.
The transaction also slightly reduces insider concentration, increasing the free float while keeping the CEO firmly in control with a 45.35% stake.
AustinLaz & Company Plc manufactures and sells ice block machines and aluminum long-span roofing sheets in Nigeria.
Its products include thermoplastic coolers and warmers, ice cream machines, PVC windows and doors, metrotile and glazed roofing, automatic direct-freeze machines, and disposable plates, spoons, and cups for industrial use.
The company was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Benin City, Nigeria.