NGX records negative close as investors lose N448bn

Investors on Monday lost about N448bn on the back of sell-offs on the Nigerian Exchange Limited, bringing to a halt five days of positive trading.

The local bourse opened the week with bearish sentiments, as the All-Share Index fell by 0.74 per cent to close at 98,708.90 points, retreating from the 100,000 points mark. Similarly, the market capitalisation declined to settle at N59.81tn.

Expectedly, the negative sentiments resulted in 18 stock gains while 28 shares declined.

Leading the gainers were Eunisell (+10.00 per cent), Livestock (+9.97 per cent), Transcorp (+9.95 per cent), RT Briscoe (+9.84 per cent), and Jaiz Bank (+9.28 per cent). In contrast, BUA Cement (-10.00 per cent), Lasaco (-9.79 per cent), Daar Communications (-9.38 per cent), Regency Alliance Insurance (-8.93 per cent), and Japaul Gold (-5.86 per cent) topped the list of losers.

Sectoral performance was also weak, with declines across major sectors including banking (-1.47 per cent), insurance (-1.13 per cent), consumer goods (-0.28 per cent), oil and gas (-0.29 per cent), and industrial goods (-3.52 per cent).

Trading activity was mixed on the day, with the volume of shares traded decreasing by 23.25 per cent to 352.87m units, while the total value of shares traded decreased by 52.21 per cent to N4.55bn. Although the number of deals rose by 7.35 per cent.

The most actively traded stocks by volume were CHAMS with 84.62m units, United Bank for Africa with 27.00m units, and AccessCorp with 22.22m units. In terms of value, UBA led with N790.18m, followed by Transcorp at N507.98m, and AccessCorp at N503.64m.

On Monday, the NGX RegCo disclosed that indigenous conglomerate Transcorp had completed its share reconstruction process.

The share reconstruction involved a consolidation of the total number of issued shares at a ratio of 1 to 4, reducing the total issued and fully paid shares of Transcorp Group from 40.6 billion shares to 10.2 billion shares. Whilst the number of shares is reduced pro rata, the total value of shareholders’ investments remains unchanged with no dilutive impact on shareholders.

Commenting on the share reconstruction, Transcorp, President/Group Chief Executive Officer, Owen D. Omogiafo said, “This share reconstruction is in line with the company’s corporate strategy and growth plan and is aimed at maximising shareholder value. The reconstruction will bring the capital structure to a manageable position.”