The Nation Newspaper

Category: Equities

  • Equities in tight market with N7b gain

    •Union Bank in N471m deal

    Equities traded in a tight market situation yesterday as considerable rally within high-cap stocks counterbalanced widespread sell pressure to close the market with a marginal gain of N7 billion.

    The benchmark index at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) showed a marginal day-on-day gain of 0.02 per cent. The marginal gain nudged the average year-to-date return for Nigerian equities to 36.22.

    The All Share Index (ASI) rose to 36,608.76 points as against its opening index of 36,600.07 points. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities also rose marginally from its opening value of N122.738 trillion to close at N12.745 trillion.

    With 17 gainers to 23 losers, the positive market situation, though marginal, was driven by gains recorded by large-cap stocks such as Nestle Nigeria, Unilever Nigeria, Zenith Bank, Dangote Sugar Refinery and United Bank for Africa (UBA).

    One major highlight of the trading yesterday was three negotiated off-market deals struck for 69.36 million shares of Union bank of Nigeria at N6.80 per share.

    Most sectoral indices closed positive. The NSE Consumer Goods Index rose by 0.3 per cent. The NSE Banking Index and NSE Insurance Index rallied by 0.2 per cent each while the NSE Oil & Gas Index and NSE Industrial Goods Index closed flat.

    Unilever Nigeria led the gainers, in percentage terms, with a gain of 5.69 per cent to close at N39.95 per share. Linkage Assurance followed with a gain of 4.92 per cent to close at 64 kobo. Wapic Insurance appreciated by four per cent to close at 52 kobo per share. Neimeth International rose by 3.39 per cent to close at 61 kobo while Learn Africa gained 3.19 per cent to close at 97 kobo.

    On the downside, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria led the losers with a drop of 9.70 per cent to close at N22.80 per share. Flour Mills of Nigeria followed with a loss of 4.98 per cent to close at N31.50. Livestock Feeds shed 4.55 per cent to close at 84 kobo per share. Julius Berger Nigeria declined by 4.53 per cent to close at N28 while UAC of Nigeria declined by 3.82 per cent to close at N16.35 per share.

    Total turnover rose by 28.4 per cent to 331.24 million shares valued at N5.56 billion in 3,231 deals. Union Bank of Nigeria topped the activity chart with 70.74 million shares valued at N480.18 million. Custodian and Allied Insurance followed with 55.18 million shares worth N207.02 million while Tantalizer traded 43 million shares valued at N21.5 million.

    “Although market performance was positive, investor sentiment has softened for the third consecutive day due to an absence of fundamental sentiment drivers. Notwithstanding, we expect market performance to stay positive in the near term as investors position ahead of anticipated year-end rally,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

  • Equities lose N144b as investors await CBN decisions

    Equities lose N144b as investors await CBN decisions

    Investors scrambled to realign their portfolios and lock in profit ahead of the meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria ( CBN ). A midweek selling spree left the equities market with a net capital depreciation of N143.9 billion last week as investors anxiously await the decisions of the MPC.

    The MPC is scheduled to meet between today and tomorrow during which the apex bank will review its monetary policy tools and rates, in the light of current macro-economic and global outlook. While many analysts expected the apex bank to retain its current rates, some analysts said improving macro-economic performance, though still fragile, could encourage the apex bank to cut rates.

    With more than two losers to every gainer, quoted equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) traded largely on the negative during the week. The All Share Index (ASI)-the benchmark index that tracks share prices at the Exchange, recorded a week-on-week decline of 1.12 per cent to close the week at 36,703.58 points as against its week’s opening index of 37,120.28 points.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities also dropped from its week’s opening value of N12.847 trillion to close at N12.774 trillion. The difference between the ASI and aggregate market value was due to the listing of new shares by two companies-Unilever Nigeria and Trans-Nationwide Express. All other sectoral indices also closed negative with the exception of the NSE Oil and Gas Index, which appreciated by 0.85 per cent. Average year-to-date return depressed to 36.57 per cent.

    Total turnover stood at 2.80 billion shares worth N54.78 billion in 17,792 deals last week as against a total of 1.32 billion shares valued at N13.78 billion traded in 19,169 deals two weeks ago. Financial services sector remained atop activity chart with 2.352 billion shares valued at N8.995 billion traded in 9,364 deals; thus contributing 83.88 per cent and 16.42 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively. The consumer goods sector followed with 178.982 million shares worth N16.849 billion in 4,297 deals while the third place was occupied by industrial goods sector with a turnover of 140.570 million shares worth N27.848 billion in 794 deals.

    The three most active stocks were Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, FBN Holdings Plc and Dangote Cement Plc, which altogether accounted for 1.917 billion shares worth N29.875 billion in 2,130 deals, contributing 68.37 per cent and 54.54 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

    In the sovereign debt market, a total of 5,950 units of Federal Government Bonds valued at N6.247 million were traded in two deals, compared with a total of 2,806 units valued at N2.623 million traded in 16 deals penultimate week.

    Sectoral indices showed a market-wide sell pressure. The NSE 30 Index, which tracks the 30 most capitalised stocks at the NSE, recorded a week-on-week decline of 1.37 per cent. The NSE Consumer Goods Index recorded the highest loss of 2.89 per cent. The NSE Banking Index depreciated by 1.29 per cent. The NSE Insurance Index dipped by 1.98 per cent while the NSE Industrial Goods Index declined by 1.03 per cent.

    There were 20 gainers against 43 losers last week as against 30 gainers and 29 losers recorded in the previous week. AG Leventis Nigeria recorded the highest gain, in percentage terms, of 27.3 per cent to close at 70 kobo. Forte Oil followed with a gain of 10.3 per cent to close at N48.62 while BOC Gases rose by 9.9 per cent to close at N4.56 per share. On the other hand, Caverton Offshore Support Group recorded the highest loss of 21.4 per cent to close at N1.32. Linkage Assurance dropped by 17.7 per cent to close at 56 kobo while C & I Leasing declined by 13.8 per cent to close at N1.44 per share.

     

    “Despite the noticeable easing of external sector pressures and improving growth prospect, we believe that in line with outcomes of previous meetings held this year, the MPC would retain rates at current level, owing to the fragility of the economic recovery and disappointing inflation numbers witnessed so far in third quarter 2017,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

     

  • Tranex N238.6m rights issue records 90.5% subscription

    Trans-Nationwide Express (Tranex) Plc has secured N216 million new equity funds from its existing shareholders, about N23 million below the initial target of N238.6 million.

    Shareholders subscribed to 270.03 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at 80 kobo per share. Tranex had offered three new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every two ordinary shares held under a N238.6 million rights issue.

    Tranex offered 298.23 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at 80 kobo per share. The qualification date for the rights issue was Wednesday, January 25, 2017.

    The supplementary issue was aimed at building up long-term capital to put the company in a vantage position to take advantage of emerging opportunities.

    Trans-Nationwide Express, Managing Director, Chidinma Iheme, said the net proceeds of the rights issue would be used to finance business expansion in order to set the company on a growth trajectory in the logistics sector.

    “It will further enhance profitability and shareholders’ value,” Iheme said, urging shareholders to pick up their rights, noting that shareholders that have not receivbed their rights circular should hasten to meet the registrars to the company

    Key extracts of the interim report and accounts of Tranex for the period ended June 30, 2017 showed top-down decline in the performance of the courier and logistics company. Turnover dropped from N421.9 million in first half 2016 to N356.6 million in first half 2017. Profit before tax slumped to N5.14 million in 2017 as against N38.7 million in 2016 while profit after tax dipped to N3.7 million in first half 2017 compared with N29.04 million in first half 2016.

    Incorporated as TNT Skypak Nigeria Limited in March, 1984 as a private limited liability company, Tranex changed its name to Trans-Nationwide Express Plc and became a public limited liability company in September 1992.

    With a share capital of N250 million and more than 3,600 shareholders, Tranex was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1993. It is currently one of the only two logistics companies quoted on the Exchange.

    The management of the company stated that its vision is to be recognised as an organisation that is synonymous with quality in all aspects of its business while it seeks to be a leader in the global express distribution industry in Nigeria by consistently exceeding the expectations of its customers and operating communities.

    It also said the company remained committed to continuous demonstration of total commitment to quality service, innovation, and professional integrity in all its activities.

    Tranex’s core values include integrity, customer satisfaction, innovation, team work and social responsibility.

     

  • Turkish Airlines posts $939m Q3 profit

    Turkish Airlines recorded operating net profit of $939 million in third quarter 2017, the highest third quarter performance in the history of the company.

    There was a 23 per cent increase on total revenues compared to the same period of 2016, reaching $3.6 billion. The nine-monthly average on total revenues stood at $8.2 billion, an increase of eight per cent. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased 90 per cent to $1.5 billion.  The 41 per cent EBITDA margin confirms the Airlines’ position amongst the most profitable airlines of the industry.

    Chairman of the Board and the Executive Committee, Turkish Airlines,  Ýlker Aycý said the net profit recorded in the third quarter 2017 clearly demonstrated the capacity of the company to generate cash.

    “As the Turkish Airlines family with our common aim to become one of the leading five star airlines of the world, we will continue this growth trend without ever compromising form our service quality. As largest exporter of Turkey, our march will continue to position Istanbul as a major hub for international airport,” Ayci said.

    The results also showed that with 81.5 per cent, Turkish Airlines this year reached the highest September occupancy capacity over the past five years. The company’s occupancy capacity increased by 17 per cent compared to third quarter of 2016, with the airline serving 21.3 million passengers. The nine-monthly average reached 79 per cent occupancy reaching 52 million passengers. Financial measures applied translated as six per cent decrease in the nine-monthly operational costs.

    Turkish Cargo increased destinations from 55 to 72 by third quarter 2017, loading up to 294 thousand tonnes of cargo, an increase of 29 per cent. Turkish Cargo also increased revenues by almost 40 per cent to $343 million, riding on the wave of industry applause that won it the “Best Air Cargo Carrier in Asia” award.

    Along with the new destinations of 2017 such as Samara and Phuket, the number of destinations served by the flag carrier reached 300 in third quarter of 2017, including 49 domestic and 251 international destinations in 120 countries. The fleet of Turkish Airlines, one of the youngest globally, includes 223 narrow body planes, 90 wide body planes and 16 cargo planes, a total of 329 aircrafts.

     

  • Unilever Nigeria raises N59b from foreign investors, others

    Unilever Plc, United Kingdom, the majority core investor in Unilever Nigeria, provided more than N35 billion in the new equity capital to Unilever Nigeria Plc as the Nigerian subsidiary successfully raised N59 billion new equity funds to bolster its operations.

    Listing document at the weekend showed that Unilever Nigeria recorded full subscription to its recent rights issue, raising N58.9 billion from both the majority core investors and other minority shareholders.

    Unilever Nigeria had floated a supplementary offer to raise N58.9 billion in new equity funds by selling 1.962 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to existing shareholders at a price of N30 per share. The rights issue was pre-allotted to shareholders in the register of the company as at the close of business on June 28, 2017 on the basis of 14 new ordinary shares for every 27 ordinary shares held.

    Following the full subscription, a total of 1.96 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each were added to the outstanding shares in the name of Unilever Nigeria on the Daily Official List of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). With the new listing of 1.96 billion ordinary shares, the total issued and fully paid up shares of Unilever Nigeria has now increased from 3.78 billion ordinary shares to 5.745 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each.

    Prior to the rights issue, Unilever UK held 60.06 per cent majority equity stake in Unilever Nigeria through its Unilever Overseas Holdings BV. Stanbic Nominees Nigeria Limited held the second largest equity stake of 10.43 per cent in Unilever Nigeria.

    Unilever UK, which had shown sustained interest in increasing its majority shareholding in the Nigerian subsidiary, fully picked up its rights. It had earlier mopped up additional shares through open market purchases at the Exchange to increase its majority stake by 1.53 per cent from 58.53 per cent in 2015 to 60.06 per cent in 2016. It had also made open market purchases in 2015.

    Unilever UK had earlier indicated its intention to acquire up to 75 per cent controlling equity stake in the Nigerian subsidiary. It had in first half of 2015 sought to increase its majority equity stake in the Nigerian subsidiary from 50 per cent to 75 per cent, citing long-term strategic importance of Unilever Nigeria to its global business.

    In a transaction initially valued at about N43 billion or £144.5 million, Unilever Overseas Holdings sought to increase its equity stake in the Nigerian company from 50.04 per cent up to a maximum of 75 per cent by buying additional shares from minority shareholders. The tender offer sought to acquire about 942.42 million ordinary shares in Unilever Nigeria at a price of N45.50 per share in cash.

  • Gowon calls for sustainable economic development

    •Stockbrokers honour Gowon, Obasanjo, Babangida, Dangote

    Former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd), has stressed the need to develop an enduring and sustainable national economic management framework that will be immune to political changes and transitions.

    Gowon spoke briefly with newsmen after he was conferred with the Honourary Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) yesterday in Lagos.

    The Former Head of State said the road to Nigeria’s economic growth is for every government to continuously build on the groundwork laid by the previous government.

    “Economic planning is that when it starts today, it should continue into the future. I am requesting all in government, irrespective of which party is in charge, that they should continue to always build on what has been done before rather than abandoning it because of difference in ideology,” Gowon said.

    He noted that the economy appeared to have stabilised and there are expectations that the economy will continue to improve.

    He commended the performance of the stockbroking profession and the capital market, noting that with the quality of professionals within the CIS fold, Nigeria shall once more regain her place of eminence in the financial world and the comity of nations.

    “Between 1992 when the Institute received its Charter and now, it has grown through the twists and turns of the business of life to make meaningful contribution to the growth and development of Nigeria’s economy. The sum total of your efforts can be seen in the growing confidence in our economy, which can favourably compete with that of many in the Western world. That is patriotism,” Gowon said.

    Three other eminent Nigerians Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, General Ibrahim Babangida and Alhaji Aliko Dangote would also be conferred with Honourary Fellowships.

    Gowon was conferred with the award yesterday as part of the Institute’s commemoration of its 25th anniversary alongside the hosting of its 21st Annual Stockbrokers’ Conference with the Theme “Adapting to the Dynamic Changes in the Financial Market “. By this new status, the eminent Nigerians shall become members of the Institute.

    President, Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS), Mr Oluwaseyi Abe noted that Gowon’s conferment was on the strength of his enduring support for the Capital market, pointing out that Gowon laid a substantial part of the foundation for the exponential growth witnessed in the Nigerian capital market in the last four decades through the promulgation of the Nigerian Enterprises Promotion Decree, also known as the Indigenization Decree 1972.

    According to him, the enactment of that law was a bold step that radically changed the landscape of the Nigerian capital market as the sale of large state-owned enterprises and multinationals to private investors through public listing gave Nigerians their desired involvement in the commanding heights of the economy and created more employment for Nigerians.

    Abe said Obasanjo has been an advocate of private sector –led economy of which the capital market is the back bone noting that Obasanjo has consistently called out to the government to leverage long term funds from the market to drive growth and development.

    According to him, the banking consolidation exercise of 2004 under Obasanjo presidency was monumental and created a more diversified, strong and reliable banking sector, which recreated the capital market by stimulating activities both in the primary market and secondary market and attracted about $650 million into the banking sector.

  • Zero tolerance: Capital market infractions drop by 87.6%

    The zero tolerance stance of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) appeared to be impacting positively on the capital market as level of infractions has dropped by about 88 per cent over the past 18 months.

    Director General, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Mounir Gwarzo, said the number of reported cases of infractions in the capital market has reduced from 291 in first quarter 2016 to 36 in the third quarter of 2017.

    He added that the number of enforcement cases has also dropped from 49 to 30 within the same period. He spoke at the 21st annual conference of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) yesterday in Lagos.

    He noted that the Commission has strengthened its rule making process and more rules are considered on a timely basis with the underlying justifications which will aid the market’s understanding of the thought process behind coming up with the rules.

    He said the decline in the level of infractions evidenced the success of recently introduced initiatives, which are believed to have help capital market stakeholders respond adequately to the dynamic changes in the financial market.

    Gwarzo said the Commission is committed to continue developing the Nigerian capital market in line with the 10-year master plan.

    He pointed out that the E-Dividend initiative is very central to the reforms at the capital market, which explained why the Commission has embarked on a massive media campaign to sensitize the public on the December 31, 2017 deadline on free e-dividend registration exercise and regularization of multiple accounts by investors.

    He urged capital market participants to constantly adapt to new and rapidly changing economic, regulatory and business environments in order to performing their expected roles in economic development of the nation.

  • Nigerian Breweries’ brand Heineken wins award

    Heineken, the international premium beer brand under the stable of Nigerian Breweries Plc., emerged as the ‘Brand of the Year, West Africa’ at the ADVAN Awards for Marketing Excellence on Saturday, 11 November 2017.

    The brand also took home the award for ‘Campaign of the Year’, while Obabiyi Fagade, Brand Manager, Heineken, got the much-coveted ‘Brand Manager of the Year’ award.

    Held at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos, Heineken won top prizes at the event for demonstrating strong leadership and innovation, excellent consumer perception, and most importantly, a seamless execution of the credential campaign ‘There’s More Behind The Star’ with international artiste, Jidenna.

    Speaking shortly after the event, Mr. Fagade dedicated the awards to the Heineken team, describing it as a worthy recognition of its hard work and passion.

    “We are really honoured to receive these awards, and coming off such as wonderful campaign with the Heineken global team, this serves as an inspiration to us in building on innovation that opens the world to our consumers, and also brings people together to share world-class experiences,” he said.

    With Heineken’s ‘There’s More Behind The Star’ credential campaign, the brand brought stories of the world’s No.1 international premium beer to life, taking a bold step to launch a country-focused campaign that gave consumers an interesting glimpse into the secrets that make its five-point red star iconic – from ingredients to the way it is brewed.

    With Jidenna, the brand captured Nigerians in enthralling and relatable stories about culture and norms while emphasizing what makes the brand important to its loyal consumers.

  • Equities relapse with N125b loss

    After two consecutive positive trading sessions, Nigerian equities suffered a major relapse on Tuesday as investors sought to rebalance their portfolios and reevaluate their considerations. With nearly three losers to every gainer, equities recorded a net capital loss of N125 billion within the five-hour trading session. It was the largest day-on-day decline in the past seven weeks.

    Aggregate market value of all quoted equities at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) slumped to N12.789 trillion as against its opening value of N12.914 trillion. The All Share Index –the benchmark index that tracks share prices at the Exchange, also declined by 0.96 per cent to close at 36,953.41 points to close at 37,312.28 points.  The average year-to-date return for Nigerian equities slipped to 37.50 per cent.

    With 32 losers to 12 gainers, sectoral indices underlined the market-wide decline in share prices. The NSE Industrial Goods Index and NSE Banking Index dipped by 1.4 per cent each. The NSE Consumer Goods Index also recorded above-average decline of 1.3 per cent while the NSE Insurance Index dropped by 0.1 per cent. However, the Oil & Gas Index was the only contrarian index with a marginal gain of 0.1 per cent.

    Nestle Nigeria led the losers with a loss of N40 to close at N1,250. Guinness Nigeria followed with a drop of N2.01 to close at N100. Unilever Nigeria dropped by N2 to close at N38. Lafarge Africa and Dangote Cement lost N1.45 each to close at N50 and N236.55 while Zenith Bank declined by N1.16 to close at N23.68.

    On the positive side, Flour Mills of Nigeria led the gainers with a gain of 89 kobo to close at N34.89. Nigerian Breweries followed with a gain of 77 kobo to close at N139.75. Forte Oil rose by 65 kobo to close at N48.62 while Okomu Oil Palm added 21 kobo to close at N68.20 per share.

    Total turnover stood at 238.36 million shares valued at N3.42 billion in 4,238 deals. The most active stock was FBN Holdings, which traded 75.8 million shares valued at N541.28 million.

    “Following the day’s unprecedented loss, we expect bargain hunting to drag market performance positive in subsequent trading sessions,” Afrinvest Securities stated.

  • Elumelu, others to speak on tax, business at LBS

    Elumelu, others to speak on tax, business at LBS

    Chairman, Heirs Holding, Dr.Tony Elumelu, will be the Guest Speaker at this year’s Lagos Business School (LBS) Alumni Day, scheduled for Thursday, November 16, 2017 in Lagos.

    Elumelu, who is also Chairman of UBA Group and Transcorp Plc, will lead discussions on the “Effects of Multiple Regulations and Taxation on Business Growth in Nigeria.”

    The other panellists include Mr. Hamzat Ayodele Subair, Chairman, Lagos State Internal Revenue Service; Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, Head of Tax & Regulatory Services and PwC West Africa Tax Leader; and Sir Ndukwe Osogho-Ajala, Chairman of Soulmate Industry Limited.

    The session, which will have Nigeria’s 2018 Economic outlook presented by Dr. Biodun Adedipe, Chief Consultant of B. Adedipe Associates and will be chaired and moderated by Prof Olawale Ajai, a Lagos Business School professor of legal, social and political environment of business.

    The event is being hosted by the Chief Executive Programme, CEP 24 and International Management Programme, IMP 2.