Nigerian Exchange sheds N308bn on Thursday after profit-taking in large-cap stocks halted a three-day winning streak. Market still posts weekly gain

Nigerian Exchange sheds N308bn on Thursday as profit-taking in heavyweight stocks broke a three-day bullish streak and pushed the benchmark index lower.

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The All-Share Index fell by 0.39 per cent, losing 478.64 points to close at 120,779.05.

This dragged market capitalisation down to ₦76.5 trillion from ₦76.81 trillion the previous day, despite cumulative gains earlier in the week.

The market is still up 2.48 per cent week-on-week and 17.35 per cent year-to-date.

Trading activity was mixed. Volume increased slightly by 4 per cent to 892.97 million shares, though value dropped 30 per cent to ₦18.23 billion, even as the number of deals rose 11 per cent to 25,375.

Out of 128 listed equities, 33 posted gains while 38 declined.

Skye Shelter Fund topped the gainers with a 10 per cent jump to ₦249.25. It was followed by Unilever Nigeria, which also rose 10 per cent to ₦51.70.

Profit-taking activities in large-cap counters drove the downturn, but long-term sentiment remains resilient.

Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals and UAC of Nigeria closed 9.98 per cent and 9.97 per cent higher at ₦5.40 and ₦38.05, respectively.

On the losers’ side, Thomas Wyatt Nigeria dropped 10 per cent to ₦2.07, Nigerian Aviation Handling Company fell 9.99 per cent to ₦91.00, while Oando Plc declined 9.96 per cent to ₦61.90. Associated Bus Company also lost 8.92 per cent, closing at ₦2.45.

Ellah Lakes led the volume chart with 113 million shares. Access Holdings followed with 76.2 million, Caverton Offshore posted 64.9 million, and Japaul Gold recorded 61.6 million shares traded.

Sectoral performance was divided. The Industrial Index rose 2.11 per cent, Insurance gained 1.08 per cent, but the Top 30, Pension, Premium, and Main Board indices all declined by between 0.26 and 0.45 per cent.

Also read: Nigerian equities market posts N259bn gain as bullish run continues

Despite Thursday’s pullback, analysts at Afrinvest projected that bearish sentiment may persist as investors continue profit-taking, especially after Wednesday’s ₦1.18 trillion gain driven by optimism around corporate earnings.