BUJA: The performance indicator of Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) declined further by 0.24%, driven majorly by losses in Mobil Oil Nigeria plc, Guiness Nigeria plc, Presco plc, International Breweries plc, and Okomu Oil Palm plc. The stock market Year-to-Date (YtD) re- turns stood at -14.34% yesterday, as the NSE All Share Index (ASI) depreciated to 29,687.93 points, compared with 29,759.04 points recorded the pre- ceding trading day. Also, market capitalisation dropped from N9.912trillion re- corded Wednesday to N9.888trillion yesterday, indicating a loss of N24bil- lion from the value of listed equities.
In 4,030 deals, equity dealers exchanged 410,585,359 units valued at N2.471billion compared with the preceding trading day when dealers ex- changed 229,482,210 units valued at N3.290billion in 3,901 deals. At the close of deals yesterday on Customs Street, fourteen (14) stocks gained, while twenty-four (24) lost their valued. Mobil Oil led the pack of losers after its share price dropped by N7.06, from N157.06 to N150; followed by the shares of Guinness Nigeria plc which dropped by N2.98, from N130 to N127.02.
Also on the losers table include Presco plc which recorded share price decline of N1.48, from N29.7 to N28.22; followed by International Breweries plc which lost N1.09, from a high of N21.89 to N20.8; while Okomu Oil Palm plc lost N0.6, from N23.9 to N23.3. “We expect a cautious trading in the next trading days as investor’s apathy towards equity investment come to play, coupled with profit taking on the back of recent gains; though we do not rule out the possibility of bargain hunting,” said research analysts at United Capital plc. On the gainers list, Lafarge Africa plc led other stocks after it added N1, from N81 to N82; followed by Flour Mills Nigeria plc which rallied by N0.99, from N36 to N36.99. Union Dicon plc rallied by N0.57, from N13.23 to N13.8; the share price of Dangote Cement plc appreciated by N0.48, from N155.02 to N155.5; while Oando plc made the list of top gainers after its share price rose by N0.36, from N16.14 to N16.5
