Nigeria’s equity market dips by N28bn

Transactions on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange took a negative trend on Wednesday, shedding N28 billion due to a decline in the share price of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorps), Zenith Bank and FTNCocoa. The market capitalisation of listed equities went down by 0.08 per cent to N36.362 trillion from N36.390 trillion reported the previous day. The NGX All Share Index also depreciated by 50.81 basis points to 66439.53 points from 66490.34 points reported the previous day. An analysis of the investment showed that Chi Plc and Cap Hotel led gainers table in percentage terms, gaining 10 per cent each to close at N1.10 and N2.75 per share respectively. UPL followed with a gain of 9.77 per cent to N2.36 per unit, Champion Breweries gained 9.72 per cent to close at N3.50 per share, Thomas Way added 9.60 per cent to close at N2.17 per share. On the contrary, Transnational Corporation of Nigeria recorded the highest loss with 9.99 per cent to close at N6.31 per unit, Ikeja Hotel trailed with a drop of 9.88 per cent to close at N3.65 per unit, FTNCocoa fell by 8.11 per cent to close at N2.04 per unit, RTBriscoe down by 6.67 per cent to close at N0.42 per share. Volume of trades during the day decreased by 200.237 million, representing 45.82 per cent as investors traded 637.193 million shares valued at N7.790 billion in 10033 deals against 436.956 million shares worth N7.013 billion exchanged hands the previous day in 7932 deals. Transnational Corporation of Nigeria led market activities with 292.409 million shares worth N2.146 billion, AccessCorp followed with account of 26.652 million shares worth N435.491 million, Dangote Sugar Refinery exchanged 24.452 million shares worth N1.454 billion, Jaiz Bank traded 18.662 million shares cost N27.723 million while Fidelity Bank exchanged 17.386 million shares worth N122.281 million.

Unclaimed dividends in capital market hits N190bn —SEC

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) says that the unclaimed dividends figure in the nation’s capital market currently stands at N190 billion. Mr Lamido Yuguda, the Director-General of SEC, said this at the second post Capital Market Committee (CMC) media briefing in Abuja on Friday. He said the figure increased due to issues concerning identity management in the country. Yuguda also attributed the rising figure to multiple subscriptions by investors during banking consolidation and identity management. According to him, “we have legacy issues that have aggravated unclaimed dividends.” Yuguda, however, said the commission was working with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), on the e-dividend portal. He added that the SEC was working with NIBSS to make changes to the electronic dividend portal currently going through some form of upgrading and repair. “We are working very hard to ensure we reduce the number of unclaimed dividends. “This is why we are upgrading the e-dividend portal with NIBSS to restore investors’ dividend and reduce unclaimed dividends. “We reiterate that every person, who has come to the capital market and invested money, should be able to get his dividends as and when due,” he said. On dollar denominated bonds listed on NGX, the director-general said it was not a problem as long as it was a corporate one. He said that the road ahead of the market was undeniably challenging but that the capital market would step forward in whatever way to lend its helping hand to the current economic reforms. “We introduced the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirement so that all information needed will be collated. “The market must make sacrifices to help drive the economic transformation that will change our nation’s fortunes for the better. “The Chairman informed the meeting that the Investments and Securities Bill (ISB) 2023 was under consideration by the 10th National Assembly. “The Bill aims to align regulations with the modern dynamics of the market and it is hoped that if passed into law, it will enable optimal contribution of the capital market to national development,” he said. The director-general said that market players were urged during the meeting to prioritise cyber-security measures to safeguard sensitive financial data and transactions. He lamented the trend where companies chose to de-list from the capital market. Also speaking, the Commissioner, Operations at SEC, Mr Dayo Obisan, said one of the major issues bedeviling the commission was for beneficiaries to get access to claim their dividends. “We keep putting our efforts to ensure that investors update their bank details, information and claim their dividends. “But we still have some of them who fill in details wrongly. “We at SEC are working very hard and we want to ensure bonuses get transferred to beneficiaries, capture everyone who is in the market so that our data is more robust. “We can be able to work effectively on reducing unclaimed dividends,” Obisan said.

Nigeria’s equity market begins week positively with N76bn gain

The Domestic equity market opened the week on a positive note, gaining N76 billion following gains recorded by small and medium stocks. The market capitalisation of listed equities increased by 0.21 percent to N35.555 trillion from N35.479 trillion reported on Friday. The NGX All Share Index also appreciated by 138.63 basis points to 63336.71 points from 65198.08 points traded the previous day. An analysis of the investment showed that Enamalwa led gainers table during the day, gaining 9.86 per cent to close at N19.59 per share Wema Bank followed with a gain of 9.77 per cent to close at N4.72 per share, UPL also appreciated by 9.73 per cent to close at M2.48 per unit, SUNU Assurance added 9.68 per cent to close at N1.02 per share Gkaxosmith gained 9.55 per cent to close at N9.75 per unit. On the contrary, Omatek topped losers chart during the day in percentage terms, shedding 8.82 per cent to close at N0.31 per unit, Prestige insurance trailed with a drop of 7.84 per cent to close at N0.47 per unit, Mcnichols fell by 7.35 per cent to close at N0.63 per share, Cornerstone Insurance declined by 7.22 per cent to close at N0.90 per share, Wapic Insurance dipped by 5.97 per cent to close at N0.63 per unit. Volume of trades declined during the day as investors traded 334.333 million shares valued at N3.891 billion in 6940 deals against 363.147 million shares worth N6.073 billion in 6644 deals. Transactions in the shares of Sterling Bank Plc led market activities during the day with 55.141 million shares valued at N197.266 million, FCMB group followed with account of 28.249 million shares cost N173.843 million, Fidelity Bank exchanged 18.842 million shares cost N150.847 million. Japaul Gold traded 17.355 million shares cost N17.018 million while AccessCorp exchanged 17.100 million shares cost N296.635 million.

DMO lists N130bn Sukuk to boost capital market

The Debt Management Office (DMO) of the Presidency has announced the listing of N130 billion sovereign Sukuk on the Nigerian Exchange and FMDQ starting on August 8, 2023.This was disclosed in a statement from the Debt Management Office (DMO). The Federal Government has been able to fix 75 roads since the FGN Sukuk initiative started. Some of the roads include Ibadan-Ilorin Road, Kaduna Eastern Bypass, and Loko Oweto Bridge over the River Benue among others.  The listing follows the successful oversubscription of the N100 billion opened in November 2022. This current listing is geared towards accommodating the needs of investors towards the facility.  According to the statement, “The sovereign Sukuk was opened for subscription in November 2022, with an initial of N100 billion however, it garnered immense interest from investors with a remarkable subscription level of N165.25 billion which represents over 165% of the amount offered. To accommodate the need of diverse investors who subscribed to the Sukuk, N130 billion was allocated.  Sukuk bonds are investment certificates representing ownership of the holder in an asset. Since 2017 when the Federal government began issuing sovereign Sukuk, the DMO has raised about N742.55 billion whose proceeds have been used for road construction and other infrastructure projects across the country.  The last DMO issued Sukuk in 2017 had an interest return of 16.47% with a tenor of 7 years. It was used in the construction of roads across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.  According to the DMO release, “the listing of the N130 billion sovereign Sukuk on the NGX and FMDQ securities exchange will expand the range of financial offerings available to investors in the capital markets.  “The opportunity to buy and sell the sovereign Sukuk will provide liquidity to investors and promote price discovery,” it noted.