Zenith, MTN, GTbank shares lift stock market index

The market kicked-off the week on a positive note as gains in MTNN (+1.3%), GUARANTY (+1.5%) and ZENITH (+2.0%) drove the All-Share Index up 0.3% to 29,710.56 points. Hence, YTD return appreciated to 10.7% while market capitalisation climbed ₦47.4bn to ₦15.3tn. Activity level was mixed as volume traded fell 17.9% to 266.9m units while value traded rose 17.7% to ₦4.2bn. ACCESS (37.8m units), ZENITH (35.0m units) and GUARANTY (33.6m units) led the most traded stocks by volume while GUARANTY (₦1.1bn), ZENITH  (₦790.4m) and DANGCEM (₦439.9m) led by value.

Sector performance was impressive as 5 of 6 sectors under our coverage ended the day in the green. The Consumer Goods index was the lone loser, down 3.1% on the back of sell-offs in NESTLE (-6.1%) and UNILEVER (-2.7%). On the flip side, the Industrial Goods  (+2.0%) and Banking (+1.2%) indices led the bulls, following buying interest in WAPCO (+3.5%), GUARANTY (+1.5%), ZENITH (+2.1%) and ETI (+2.0%). Meanwhile, gains in TOTAL (+9.4%), WAPIC (+5.7%) and LAWUNION (+10.0%) buoyed performance in the Oil & Gas (+0.3%) and Insurance (+1.1%) indices. Similarly, the  AFR-ICT advanced 0.8% on the back of price appreciation  in MTNN (+1.3%).

Investor sentiment as measured by market breadth (advance/decline ratio) climbed to 1.8x from the 0.8x recorded in the previous session as 21 stocks advanced against 12 decliners. Meanwhile, the top gainers were LAWUNION (+10.0%), TOTAL (+9.4%) and CADBURY (+8.5%) while NCR (-9.9%), NESTLE (-6.1%) and UNITY (-5.8%) topped the losers. We expect gains in the local bourse to persist, however there is a possibility for investors to take profit in the near term.

Continental Reinsurance Plc. voluntarily delists its entire issued share capital from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Market Statistics for Monday, 20th January 2020 

Source: Afrinvest