Nigerian stocks rebound as investors gain N239bn

• Published On: 19 April 2025 at 19:27

The Nigerian stocks market closed in positive territory on Thursday, with investors pocketing a gain of N239 billion in market capitalisation, erasing earlier losses following a slow start to the week.

The recovery came following a four-day trading week due to the Easter holidays.

According to figures from the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), the market capitalisation increased to N65.5 trillion from N65.26 trillion the day before. The All-Share Index increased 390.52 points, or 0.38 percent, to 104,242.40.

The increase was driven by increasing investor interest in some banking and consumer goods stocks. Abbey Mortgage Bank, Nigerian Breweries, Livestock Feeds, and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated also made significant gains.

Abbey Mortgage Bank headed the gainers' chart, rising 9.94% to settle at N8.96 per share. Nigerian Breweries followed closely, increasing by 9.86% to close at N36.20. Associated Bus Company and Livestock Feeds also increased by 9.23% and 9.2%, respectively.

However, the session was not completely bullish. Sunu Assurances Nigeria led the losers' list, dropping 9.91 percent to N5.00 per share. Ellah Lakes decreased by 9.76%, Cornerstone Insurance fell by 9.44%, and Sovereign Trust Insurance sank by 9.18%.

In terms of market activity, Universal Insurance led the volume chart with 89.3 million shares traded, followed by Fidelity Bank (49.5 million), Access Holdings (32.9 million), and Zenith Bank (15.6 million).

While trade volume increased, the market value decreased. A total of 376.29 million shares worth N7.91 billion were exchanged in 11,204 transactions, showing a 7% increase in volume but a 42% drop in turnover and an 8% decrease in the number of trades compared to the previous session.

Overall, sectoral indicators performed well. The Banking Index rose by 1.33 per cent, the Consumer Goods Index by 1.24 per cent, the Pension Index by 0.85 per cent, and the Oil & Gas Index by 0.44 per cent.

Despite Thursday’s rally, the market closed the week with a 0.52 per cent loss and a four-week slide of 1.08 per cent. Still, year-to-date returns remained in the green at 1.28 per cent, signaling resilience among investors amid cautious sentiment.

Analysts attributed the rebound to bargain hunting in fundamentally strong stocks, as investors position ahead of Q2 earnings reports and corporate actions.