January 15, (THEWILL) — The Nigerian equities market closed lower on Thursday, as profit-taking across select stocks pressured overall performance. Market capitalisation declined from N106.780, at the open to N106.323 at the close, while the NGX All-Share Index (ASI) fell from 166,771.95 points to 166,057.29 points.
Market breadth was negative, with 36 gainers against 41 losers, reflecting a cautious trading session despite pockets of strong price appreciation in select stocks.
The top gainers include:
• NESTLE advanced by 10.00 percent (from N1,958.00 to N2,153.80).
• NCR gained 9.97 percent (from N106.30 to N116.90).
• JAIZBANK rose by 9.92 percent (from N7.46 to N8.20).
• MORISON added 9.90 percent (from N5.15 to N5.66).
• MECURE appreciated by 9.84 percent (from N88.95 to N97.70).
The top losers were:
• MCNICHOLS, which declined by 9.99 percent (from N7.31 to N6.58).
• CAVERTON shed 9.47 percent (from N8.45 to N7.65).
• IKEJAHOTEL fell by 9.43 percent (from N38.70 to N35.05).
• FTNCOCOA dropped 9.38 percent (from N7.78 to N7.05).
• NEIMETH slipped by 8.91 percent (from N10.10 to N9.20).
Stocks that closed unchanged include Dangote Cement, Lafarge Africa, Seplat Energy, U.A.C.N Plc, and Julius Berger.
Investor sentiment remained mixed, as gains in heavyweight and mid-cap stocks were offset by broad selloffs, pointing to ongoing portfolio rebalancing.
In the next trading session, market activity is expected to remain cautious, with investors likely to continue selective positioning while monitoring earnings expectations and macroeconomic signals.
Ogochukwu Onwaeze
