Nigerian Stock Market Loses N363 Billion as Profit-Taking Weighs on Mid-Tier Stocks.

The Nigerian stock market began the week on a bearish note, shedding approximately N363 billion on Monday as investors engaged in widespread profit-taking, particularly in mid-tier equities.

According to data from the Nigerian Exchange, the market capitalisation declined by 0.41%, falling from N88.769 trillion on Friday to N88.406 trillion at the close of trading on Monday. Similarly, the All-Share Index dropped by 573.31 points to 139,722.19, compared to the previous 140,295.50.

The negative sentiment was driven by sell-offs in key stocks such as Ellah Lakes, Eterna, Veritas Kapital, CHAMS,and Cutix, all of which recorded significant losses.

Top Losers:

• Ellah Lakes, Eterna, and Veritas Kapital each declined by 10%, closing at N12.69, N34.20, and N1.89 per share, respectively.
• CHAMS fell by 9.56% to N2.65, while Cutix dropped 7.71% to N2.23 per share.

Despite the downturn, a few stocks managed to post gains:

Top Gainers:

• Sovereign Trust Insurance led the chart, rising by 10% to close at N2.86 per share.
• SCOA Nigeria gained 9.83% to N6.59,
• Cornerstone Insurance appreciated by 7.98% to N6.90,
• Guinea Insurance advanced 7.75% to N1.53,
• Secure Electronic Technology rose 4.71% to 89 kobo.

While trading volume declined, there was a notable increase in transaction value and the number of deals. A total of 407.9 million shares were exchanged in 33,859 deals, valued at N14.78 billion. This was in contrast to Friday’s session, which saw 435.14 million shares traded across 25,609 deals, worth N10.4 billion.

Most Active Stocks:

• FCMB Group led the activity chart with 55.8 million shares worth N601.69 million.
• Access Corporation followed with 31.9 million shares valued at N843 million.
• Fidelity Bank recorded 26.15 million shares worth N547.9 million.
• Secure Electronic Technology traded 22.36 million shares for N19.52 million.
• AIICO Insurance exchanged 17.7 million shares valued at N70.47 million.

Analysts attribute the current bearish trend to profit-taking after recent rallies in the market, noting that investor sentiment remains cautious amid economic uncertainties.

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