Market capitalization rose to ₦94.2 trillion, up from ₦93.85 trillion on Wednesday, while the All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 612.81 points (0.41%) to close at 148,355.04 points. This reflects a weekly gain of 1.47%, a four-week rise of 4.45%, and a year-to-date appreciation of 44.14%.
Market activity also improved, with 432.31 million shares valued at ₦16.80 billion traded in 23,642 deals — representing an 11% increase in volume, a 36% rise in value, and a 3% uptick in transactions compared to the previous session.
Out of 128 listed equities that participated in the session, 30 recorded gains while 26 declined.
Top Gainers and Losers
Leading the gainers’ chart, Secure Electronic Technology rose 7.06% to close at ₦0.91 per share, followed by Sterling Financial Holdings Company, which appreciated 6.49% to ₦8.20. Livestock Feeds gained 5.33% to ₦7.90, while The Initiates Plc advanced 5.18% to ₦14.00.
On the downside, Sunu Assurances Nigeria Plc fell 9.71% to ₦5.21, while Haldane McCall dipped 7.53% to ₦4.05. Daar Communications lost 6.36% to ₦1.03, and Sovereign Trust Insurance declined 6.05% to ₦3.26 per share.
Trading Highlights
Consolidated Hallmark Holdings led in trading volume with 40.95 million shares worth ₦196.59 million. Access Holdings followed with 40.34 million shares valued at ₦1.04 billion. Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) and Zenith Bank recorded trades of 27.57 million and 25.05 million shares, valued at ₦2.58 billion and ₦1.71 billion, respectively.
In terms of value, GTCO topped the chart with ₦2.57 billion, followed by Aradel Holdings at ₦2.52 billion. Zenith Bank, Nestle Nigeria, and MTN Nigeria also featured prominently with ₦1.71 billion, ₦1.33 billion, and ₦1.06 billion, respectively.
Sectoral Performance
The sectoral indices reflected broad market strength. The Industrial Index gained 1.44%, the Premium Index rose 0.95%, and the Consumer Goods Index advanced 0.24%. The Pension and Banking indices also posted modest gains of 0.22% and 0.21%, respectively.
Analyst Outlook
Market analysts attributed the rebound to renewed investor appetite for fundamentally strong stocks ahead of the third-quarter earnings season, alongside institutional investor positioning.
They noted that the rise in trading turnover signals growing market confidence, even as the Nigerian equities market maintains a robust year-to-date performance despite persistent macroeconomic headwinds.
With momentum building, analysts expect bullish sentiment to continue in the short term as investors position for corporate earnings releases and dividend declarations.