Equities Market Sustains Bullish Trend on Wednesday as Investors Gain N245 Billion

• The Nigerian stock market sustained its positive trend on Wednesday, as investors gained N244.62 billion following trading activity.
• Data showed renewed buying interest in major stocks such as FirstHoldCo, Mecure, and CAP drove the market higher
• FirstHoldCo led the gainers, while LivingTrust was the top decliner

Legit.ng journalist Dave Ibemere has over a decade of business journalism experience with in-depth knowledge of the Nigerian economy, stocks, and general market trends.

The Nigerian stock market maintained its bullish trend on Wednesday, December 17 as the All-Share Index rose by 0.26% to close at 149,842.82 points, up from 149,459.11 points in the previous session.

Data shows investors’ wealth increased by N244.62 billion, lifting market capitalisation to N95.53 trillion, while the year-to-date return rose to 45.58%.

The gain was driven by buying in stocks across the banking, consumer goods, and industrial sectors.

At the close of trading, FirstHoldCo, Mecure, CAP, Ikeja Hotel, Okomu Oil, Access Corp, Vitafoam, NAHCO, GTCO, UBA, and twenty-seven others were among the top performers.

Read also

Tinubu’s economic policies: NPA cargo throughput hits 33.5m tonnes

Notably, FirstHoldCo, Mecure, and Alex all traded above their fifty-two week highs, while CAP also reached its fifty-two week high. Conversely, LivingTrust traded below its fifty-two week low.

Sector Performance

Market activity was largely bullish across key sectors.

The banking, consumer goods, and industrial indexes all recorded gains, supported by renewed buying in stocks such as Zenith Bank, Access Holdings, United Bank for Africa, Lafarge Africa, and Guaranty Trust Holding Company.

Top Gainers

FirstHoldCo rose from N36.00 to N39.60, gaining N3.60 (+10.00%). Lasaco advanced from N2.50 to N2.75, gaining N0.25 (+10.00%). VeritasKap increased from N1.60 to N1.76, rising N0.16 (+10.00%). Prestige grew from N1.50 to N1.65, adding N0.15 (+10.00%). Mecure climbed from N45.85 to N50.40, gaining N4.55 (+9.92%).

Top Losers

LivingTrust fell from N3.50 to N3.15, losing N0.35 (–10.00%). Intenegins declined from N2.52 to N2.27, shedding N0.25 (–9.92%). McNichols dropped from N3.19 to N2.97, losing N0.22 (–6.90%). Omaket decreased from N1.17 to N1.09, down N0.08 (–6.84%). Chams fell from N3.12 to N2.92, losing N0.20 (–6.41%).

Total trade on Wednesday

A total of 5.93 billion shares worth N216.19 billion were exchanged across 25,205 deals.

Read also

FG, states, LGs share N1.9trn as FAAC allocation drops in November

ETI led with 5.25 billion shares valued at N168.66 billion. FirstHoldCo traded 108 million shares worth N4.21 billion.

Sterling NG exchanged 87 million shares valued at N606 million. FCMB traded 74 million shares worth N784 million. Access Corp recorded 41 million shares valued at N841 million.

Banks releases financial results

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that about ten Nigerian banks started 2025 on a positive note, generating approximately N1.83 trillion in profit after tax.

An analysis of the banks’ unaudited financials showed Zenith Bank, Ecobank, First Bank, Access Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, UBA, Wema Bank, Fidelity Bank, FCMB, and Stanbic IBTC as the top performers during the period under review.

Source: Legit.ng