Trading on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) ended on Monday, December 31, 2018, with Cement Company of Nigeria (CCNN) gaining the most value, thereby putting the most smiles on the faces of its shareholders in terms of returns on investment. It was followed by Unity Bank and Sterling Bank Plc. Lafarge Africa, makers of Elephant Cement however led the decliners’ side after sliding by 72.27% from N44.89 to N12.45, even as the company is undergoing a rights issue for the umpteenth time.
In a year the NSE’s benchmark All-Share Index declined by 17.81%, helped by last minute Santa Claus rally, CCNN and Unity Bank doubled their opening share price at the beginning of the year. While the makers of Sokoto Cement, which recently finalized its merger with Kalambaina Cement, another member of BUA Group (READ MORE), closed 104.21% up, rising from N9.50 at the beginning, to N19.40; Unity Bank climbed 101.89% up to N1.07, up from 53 kobo at a time it announced ongoing discussions with potential investors(READ MORE); while Sterling Bank closed 75.93% better than it opened for the year.
NEM gained 62.65%; LearnAfrica, 54.55%; Caverton Offshore, 48.84%; Vitafoam chalked 46.67%, even as the directors have proposed a 25 kobo dividend, as well as bonus of one new share for every five held (READ MORE); just as Diamond Bank closed the year 45.33% up on the strength of its ongoing merger talks with Access Bank (READ MORE), which has already received a no-objection, or approval-in-principle from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), its primary regulator (READ MORE). Diamond Bank was the biggest gainer in December, the period when the scheme of merger with Access Bank was published. In December alone, the share price of Diamond Bank soared by 235.38% from 65 kobo to N2.18 per share, according to data by TRW Stockbrokers; conversely Access Bank’s share price slipped 12.26% during the month.
Custodian & Allied Insurance garnered 45.24%; Fidson Healthcare, 33.78%; Beta Glass, 33.11%; Airline Service and Logistics, 32.77%; and NPF Microfinance Bank, 32%; ahead of FCMB Holdings, 27.7%; Wema Bank, 21.15; just like AIICO Insurance; among others.
Besides the NSE’s benchmark ASI, all of the sectorial indicators closed negative for the year 2018, according to TRW Stockbrokers data, with the industrial index as the worst decliner, after shedding 37.4%. The NSE Consumer Goods lost 23.28% of its opening value; NSE 30 index, 18.87%; NSE Banking, 16.09%; NSE Mainboard, 15.98%; NSE 50, 14.77%; NSE Premium Board, 14.39%; NSE Lotus Islamic index, 12.75%; NSE Pension, 12.49%; NSE Insurance, 9.93%; NSE Oil & gas, 8.61%.
AG Leventis followed Lafarge WAPCO, 61.43%; Universal Insurance lost 60%; same as Sunu Assurance, FTN Cocoa and Cornerstone Insurance; Japaul Oil & Gas, Sovereign Insurance, Mutual Benefits Assurance and Regal Insurance, lost 58% each. Royal Exchange shed 56%; Niger Insurance, 52%; Union Diagnostics, 50%; International Breweries, 44.04%; Dangote Flour, 43.62%; UACN, 42.31%; PZ Cussons, 41.26%; just as Livestock Feeds lost 40.96%. The share price of Lasaco Assurance fell 40% down in 2018; Honeywell Flour, 39.05%; Nigerian Breweries, 36.62%; Cadbury Nigeria, 36.18%; Access Bank, 34.93%; and Forte Oil, 33.99%, in a year when the company announced recently plans by its majority shareholder- Femi Otedola, to sell his 75% stake in the downstream petroleum company (READ MORE). Glaxosmithkline Consumer, 32.90%; UACN Property Development Company, 31.54%; Julius Berger, 28.21%; just like Union Bank of Nigeria.
Other major decliners during the year included Dangote Cement, the NSE’s biggest stock by market capitalization, which shed 17.52%; Fidelity Bank, 17.48%; Oando, 16.53%; Guaranty Trust Bank, 15.46%; Zenith Bank, 10.1%; and Nestle Nigeria, 4.56%.
