Equities market drops by N296bn on profit-taking in MTN Nigeria, 25others 

The equities market on Monday witnessed a mixed note as the overall capitalisation edged down by N296 billion amid profit-taking in MTN Nigeria Communication Plc (dropped by 2.07 per cent) and 25 others.

The Nigerian Exchange Limited All Share Index (NGX ASI) lost by 471.93 basis points or 0.43 per cent to close at 108,261.47 basis points. Also, market capitalisation declined by N296 billion to close at N68.043 trillion.

However, investor sentiment, as measured by market breadth was positive as 39 stocks advanced, while 26 declined. Meyer, Multiverse Mining & Exploration and Smart Products Nigeria recorded the highest price gain of 10 per cent each to close at N8.80, N11.00 and 55 kobo respectively, per share.

Beta Glass followed with a gain of 9.99 per cent to close at N176.70, while Haldane McCall rose by 9.88 per cent to close at N4.67, per share.

On the other hand, eTranzact International led the losers’ chart by 10 per cent to close at N5.40, per share. John Holt followed with a decline of 9.48 per cent to close at N5.25, while Union Dicon Salt declined by 9.47 per cent to close at N7.65, per share.

C&I Leasing depreciated by 8.31 per cent to close at N3.86, while Linkage Assurance declined by 8.06 per cent to close at N1.14, per share.

The total volume traded declined by 10.73 per cent to 414.574 billion units, valued at N10.717 billion, and exchanged in 16,664 deals. Transactions in the shares of Tantalizer topped the activity chart with 49.189 million shares valued at N113.210 million. VFD Group followed with 48.880 million shares worth N782.312 million, while Access Holdings traded 29.432 million shares valued at N629.377 million.

Zenith Bank traded 24.317 million shares valued at N1.181 billion, while AIICO Insurance sold 19.109 million shares worth N30.980 million.

Looking forward, United Capital Plc said “the equities market might be mixed as investors await MPC’s decision on Monday and Tuesday next week. Similarly, the elevated interest rate environment would continue to dampen the equities market. Additionally, retail investors’ profit booking activity will result in selloffs and might impede the upward movement of stock prices.

“Conversely, opportunistic traders will continue to trade, taking advantage of every opportunity that emerges in the market. The continued release of Q1 2025 results will have investors cherry pick corporates with solid results, whilst those with weak performance might see selloffs. However, some investors might take position in stocks that are projected to rebound within the year.”

Related