Kelechukwu Mgboji 
…as investors position for dividends
As the fiscal year winds down to a close, equities investors are fast positioning in dividend paying stocks in expectation for mouth – watering returns.
Consequently, the banking subsector of the market has seen unprecedented inflow in investments leading to spike in turnover volume of transactions.
At the close of transactions on Friday, the sector accounted for 87.6 per cent of total turnover. Of the 6.468 billion shares worth N75.745 billion traded in 48,804 deals, the Financial Services Industry accounted for 5.666 billion shares (87.6%) valued at N44.263 billion traded in 23,268 deals.
Thus, the sector contributed 87.60 per cent and 58.44 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively. Trading in the top three equities of Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, Consolidated Hallmark Holdings Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc accounted for 3.839 billion shares worth N20.905 billion in 5,652 deals, contributing 59.36 per cent and 27.60 per cent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.
The Oil and Gas Industry followed with 245.722 million shares worth N15.877 billion in 9,057 deals. Third place was the Agriculture Industry, with a turnover of 216.422 million shares worth N1.087 billion in 1,653 deals.
Over all, there was significant improvement in trading activities with higher volume of shares (6.468 billion) and money (N75.745 billion) changing hands compared to previous week’s low trade volume of shares (2.717 billion) valued at N54.632 billion that exchanged hands last week in 46,848 deals.
The banks attracting investors’ attention include pan African banking behemoth, UBA Plc, which paid mouthwatering interim dividend of N2.0 per 50kobo share on October 22 following a very impressive third quarter (Q3) financial result that exceeded analysts’ expectation in all parameters.
Also Stanbic IBTC had earlier on September 30 paid equal interim dividend while Zenith and GTCO paid N1.0 interim dividend apiece.AccessCorp and Fidelity paid 45 kobo and 85 kobo interim dividend respectively, while FBN Holdings paid 40 kobo interim dividend.
And these dividend-paying Tier 1 lenders have accounted for higher trade volume and value on the Nigerian Exchange. “We anticipate mixed sentiments in the week ahead with investors focusing on recent bank earnings releases.
In the medium term, we expect investors’ sentiments to be shaped by developments in the macroeconomic landscape and the movement of yields in the fixed-income market,” analysts at Cordros Capital stated in an emailed research analysis last Friday.
