Investors on Nigeria’s stock market lost about US$696 million in value on Thursday as continued profit-taking and broad-based selling pushed equities lower, extending a recent bearish trend on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX).
The NGX All-Share Index (ASI) declined 0.64 percent to close at 233,580.83 points, reflecting weaker investor sentiment and increased caution across major sectors.
The drop wiped out N958.5 billion (US$696 million) in market value, with total market capitalisation falling from N150.85 trillion to N149.89 trillion.
The latest decline reduced the market’s year-to-date return to 50.10 percent, although Nigerian equities have still recorded strong gains since the beginning of the year.
Thursday’s session marked another day of losses as investors continued to take profits from stocks that had recorded significant rallies, particularly large-cap companies.
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Analysts said concerns over elevated valuations after the market’s strong performance have encouraged some investors to lock in gains, increasing selling pressure across several sectors.
Market breadth remained firmly negative at 0.4 times, with 34 stocks declining compared with only 14 gainers.
Among the biggest losers were DEAP Capital Management, Aradel Holdings, Trans-Nationwide Express, Regal Insurance and C&I Leasing.
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Meanwhile, Red Star Express, Legend Internet, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals, Abbey Mortgage Bank and Ellah Lakes were among the session’s top performers.
Sector performance was largely negative, with oil and gas stocks suffering the sharpest decline, falling 5.22 percent. The commodity index dropped 3.36 percent, while insurance shares declined 2.59 percent.
Banking stocks fell 0.28 percent, consumer goods slipped 0.06 percent, and industrial goods recorded a marginal decline of 0.004 percent.
Trading activity also weakened as investors adopted a more cautious approach. Total volume traded fell 19.35 percent to 393.65 million shares from 488.08 million shares in the previous session.
Market turnover declined 8.19 percent to N19.21 billion, compared with N20.93 billion previously, while the number of deals dropped slightly to 45,813 transactions.
Despite the ongoing pressure, analysts said renewed buying interest could emerge as investors search for opportunities among fundamentally strong companies whose valuations have become more attractive following the sell-off.
However, they warned that continued profit-taking among stocks that have delivered substantial returns this year could limit the pace of recovery.
The market’s ability to rebound, analysts said, will depend on renewed institutional participation, improved investor confidence and stronger expectations around corporate earnings in the second half of the year.
