The Nigerian equities market closed slightly lower on Thursday ahead of the Easter holidays, as sell-offs in 24 listed companies erased about N3 billion from total market value.
Losses in stocks such as John Holt Plc, Abbey Mortgage Bank Plc, International Energy Insurance Plc, CHAMS Plc, and Tantalizers Plc weighed on overall market performance, as investors moved to offload shares.
At the close of trading, market capitalisation declined marginally by 0.002 per cent, dropping from N129.809 trillion to N129.806 trillion. Similarly, the All-Share Index slipped by 4.66 points to settle at 201,698.89, compared to 201,703.55 recorded in the previous session. Despite the downturn, the market maintained a strong year-to-date return of 29.62 per cent.
Market breadth remained positive, with 34 gainers outperforming 24 losers, indicating pockets of investor confidence despite the overall dip.
Leading the gainers’ chart was Unilever Nigeria Plc, which rose by 10 per cent to close at N103.40 per share. Other notable advancers included Fortis Global Insurance Plc, Multiverse Mining and Exploration Plc, Legend Internet Plc, and Zichis Agro Allied Industries Ltd.
On the losers’ side, John Holt recorded the sharpest decline, shedding 9.91 per cent to close at N15.45 per share. Abbey Mortgage Bank, International Energy Insurance, CHAMS, and Tantalizers also posted significant losses.
Trading activity weakened during the session, with total volume traded falling by 31.33 per cent to 559.98 million shares. The value of transactions stood at N19.26 billion across 49,676 deals.
Secure Electronic Technology Plc led the volume chart with 59.69 million shares traded, accounting for 10.66 per cent of total volume. Meanwhile, Zenith Bank Plc dominated the value chart with transactions worth N2.47 billion, representing 12.84 per cent of the market’s total value.
