Investors in the Nigerian equities market gained N234 billion on Friday as renewed buying interest in selected stocks lifted the Nigerian Exchange’s key performance indicators.
Market capitalisation rose by N234 billion to close at N155.5 trillion, up from N155.3 trillion recorded on Thursday. Similarly, the All-Share Index advanced by 366 points to settle at 242,593.31, compared to 242,227.31 in the previous trading session.
The positive performance was driven by gains in stocks such as International Energy Insurance Plc (Intenegins), Abbey Mortgage Bank and DAAR Communications, among others.
Market breadth closed positive, with 39 gainers against 11 losers, while 96 stocks remained unchanged.
A total of 608.49 million shares valued at N32 billion were exchanged in 53,826 deals during the day’s trading.
On the gainers’ chart, Intenegins, Abbey Mortgage and DAAR Communications appreciated by 10 per cent each to close at N7.26, N9.35 and N1.98 per share respectively.
Conversely, Academy Press led the losers’ table after shedding 10 per cent to close at N8.25 per share. UPL declined by 9.88 per cent to N5.10, while VFD Group fell by 9.85 per cent to N10.35 per share.
Analysis of trading activity showed that Abbey Mortgage emerged as the most actively traded stock by volume, accounting for 164 million shares in 659 deals. Ella Lakes followed with 76 million shares traded in 294 deals, while Access Holdings recorded 44 million shares exchanged in 2,127 transactions.
On the value chart, Seplat Energy topped the list with trades worth N3.9 billion in 655 deals. Aradel Holdings followed with transactions valued at N3.8 billion across 2,273 deals, while MTN Nigeria recorded trades worth N3.2 billion in 4,507 deals.
The market’s positive close reversed the serial losses recorded in recent sessions and provided a boost to investor sentiment at the end of the trading week.
