Investors interest in Flour Mills earns Greek businessman John Coumantarous $8.5m

Despite challenging macroeconomic conditions in Nigeria, investors at the Nigerian Stock Exchange continue to defy all odds to up their investments, a situation that has helped boost the market share value of Flours Mills of Nigeria Plc.

This growing interest resulted in Greek multimillionaire businessman John Coumantaros, the company’s largest shareholder and CEO, earning $8.5 million in less than 10 days.

BusinessDay noted a continuous positive trend on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, commencing on December 12, 2023, when the all-share index stood at 71,907 bps, rising to 72,289 bps by the end of trading on Thursday, December 21, 2023.

Data from the NGX revealed that Coumantaros’ holdings in the conglomerate increased by N7.01 billion ($8.49 million) over the past 10 days, driven by strong demand for shares in a prominent consumer goods company.

According to Kwayisi, a market intelligence website, “The current share price of Flour Mills Nigeria (FLOURMILL) is NGN 33.00. FLOURMILL closed its last trading day (Thursday, December 21, 2023) at 33.00 NGN per share on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NGX), recording a 3.1% gain over its previous closing price of 32.00 NGN.

“Flour Mills began the year with a share price of 28.40 NGN and has since gained 16.2% on that price valuation, ranking it 106th on the NGX in terms of year-to-date performance.

“Flour Mills Nigeria is the 50th most traded stock on the Nigerian Stock Exchange over the past three months (Sep 22–Dec 21, 2023). FLOURMILL has traded a total volume of 90.8 million shares—in 4,819 deals—valued at NGN 2.85 billion over the period, with an average of 1.44 million traded shares per session.

“A volume high of 13.5 million was achieved on November 3rd, and a low of 76,651 on November 23rd, for the same period. The table below details the last 10 trading days of activity of Flour Mills Nigeria on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.”

John, who took over control from his late father, George Coumantaros, owns a 63 percent stake in the food and agro-allied company, according to Billionaires.Africa magazine. Thanks to the increase in the company’s share value at the Nigerian Stock Exchange, its worth climbed from N78.69 billion ($95.33 million) to N85.71 billion ($103.82 million), marking a gain of over N7 billion ($8.5 million).

This surge not only showcases Coumantaros’s substantial financial influence but also demonstrates the lucrative nature of the Nigerian Stock Exchange for both local and international investors.

So, do you own stocks on the Nigerian Stock Exchange? If so, share with us your experience—has investing in the NGX been exciting and rewarding for you?