NGX Expands by N377bn as Investors Hunt Undervalued Stocks
The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) climbed week on week as equities investors portfolio value increased by more than N377 billion. The local bourse continued its upward trajectory, extending its weekly winning streak with a modest gain of 0.83%.
Stockbrokers said the positive momentum comes as investors usher in the third quarter of the year with renewed optimism, positioning themselves strategically ahead of the anticipated release of second quarter and half-year corporate earnings.
“A wave of portfolio rebalancing activities and calculated position-taking dominated market sentiment, fueled by expectations of resilient financial performance from listed companies”, Cowry Asset Limited said in its market update.
Series of updates on NGX revealed that several corporates have already begun declaring closed periods for Q2 disclosures, with forward-looking earnings forecasts for the second half of 2025 providing a tailwind for market confidence.
Cowry Asset Limited emphasized that these updates, coupled with early signs of improved profitability from select firms, served to galvanize investor interest throughout the week. At the close of the trading session on Friday, the NGX All-Share Index climbed to 120,989.66 points, reflecting the 0.83% week-on-week gain.
Equities investors took advantage of perceived undervaluations in some listed companies to build their portfolios with some rebalancing efforts. Stockbrokers said in their reports that the bullish sentiment was further bolstered by a solid market breadth, which saw a number of stocks touching new 52-week highs, pointing to a broad-based participation in the market rally.
Despite the delisting of Notore Chemical Industries Plc from the Exchange on Friday, the overall market capitalization of listed equities rose by N377.26 billion to close at N76.34 trillion, representing a 0.50% increase over the week. As a result, the year-to-date return for the NGX benchmark index now stands at an impressive 17.55%, underscoring a resilient first half of 2025 for the equities market.
Trading activity was notably upbeat, according to market data. Investors executed a total of 118,569 trades during the week, reflecting a 4.05% increase from the previous week’s total. The volume of shares traded surged by 41.34% to 5.47 billion units, while the total value exchanged rose by 6.40% to N108.09 billion, up from last week’s N101.59 billion.
Market breadth settled at 2.85x, as 77 stocks recorded gains compared to 27 decliners. Across sectoral indices, performance tilted mostly to the upside. Cowry Asset Limited reported that five of the six tracked indices under its coverage universe closed in the green, signaling broad investor interest across different segments of the market.
The only exception was the Industrial Goods Index, which declined by 2.11% due to persistent selloffs in names like Multiverse and Julius Berger. The Insurance and Consumer Goods indices posted weekly gains of 5.86% and 4.08%, respectively.
Stockbrokers said price appreciation in NEIMETH, International Breweries, Champion Breweries, Dangote Sugar, Guinea Insurance, Sovereign Insurance, and Prestige Assurance contributed significantly to this upward momentum.
The Oil & Gas, Commodity, and Banking indices also posted marginal gains of 0.77%, 0.53%, and 0.12%, respectively. Notable gainers in these sectors included Zenith Bank, Okomu Oil, Japaul Gold, Presco, Wema Bank, Eterna, and Fidelity Bank, all of which experienced investor inflows driven by fundamentals and recent earnings signals.
Among the top performing stocks for the week, NEIMETH Pharmaceuticals stole the spotlight with an astonishing weekly return of 60.5%. The pharma stock was trailed by Ellah Lakes, which rose by 31.3%, while International Breweries, CWG, and Champion Breweries gained 26.4%, 25%, and 22%, respectively.
On the flip side, Multiverse and ABC Transport led the laggards, each losing 9.3%, followed by Oando (7.4%), BUA Foods (6.5%), and DAAR Communications (6.2%). Looking ahead, market sentiment in the coming week is expected to remain a mix of caution and optimism, Cowry Asset Limited said.
The investment firm stated that investors will likely focus on macroeconomic cues, particularly the Q1 2025 economic performance report, alongside the flurry of Q2 and H1 financial results from listed firms. “While market volatility may persist amid this flurry of activity, the broader outlook remains positive for fundamentally sound stocks with strong earnings prospects.
“As always, we continue to advise discerning investors to maintain a long-term view, prioritizing companies with resilient balance sheets, consistent dividends, and solid growth narratives”, Cowry Asset Limited said. #NGX Expands by N377bn as Investors Hunt Undervalued Stocks Neimeth Rises by 60.5% as Shareholders Approve Capital Raise
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