In the half-year (H1) ended June 30, these top ten stockbroking firms handled equities transactions value at about N541.2billion, representing 52.11percent of the total value of stocks exchanged on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) between January 1, 2021, and June 30, 2021.
The NGX Broker Performance Report at the Bourse shows Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Limited led the pack accounting for over N112.089billion of equities transactions in H1’21, representing 10.79percent of the total value of stocks traded in the review period.
Investment One Stockbrokers International Limited followed with equities deals valued at N72.408billion or 6.97percent, while Cardinalstone Securities Limited which carried out equities transactions worth N70.645billion came third on the list of the top ten by the value of trade, representing 6.80percent.
Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) had on Thursday, June 10 launched an enhanced broker performance ranking report designed to provide detailed insight into the performance of Trading License Holders across asset classes and improve participation in other exchange products.
The new Broker Performance Report, which shows the performance of Brokers ranked by the weighted calculated points in deals, volume, and value across all asset classes, comes in three different levels, distinguished by fields to be displayed.
In the six months to June 30, other top stockbroking firms and the value of stocks they exchanged in the review first half are Rencap Securities (Nig) Limited (N65.487billion or 6.31percent), EFG Hermes Nigeria Limited (N46.217billion or 4.45percent), and Absa Securities Nigeria Limited (N43.157billion or 4.16percent).
Read also: Nigeria stocks rally further as focus shifts to H1 scorecards
Also, Meristem Stockbrokers Limited accounted for equities deals worth N42.642billion or 4.11percent of the total value of stocks exchanged on the NGX in H1 while FBN Quest Securities Limited traded stocks worth N33.328billion or 3.21percent; WSTC Securities Limited (N29.476billion or 2.84percent), and Apel Asset Limited (N25.756billion or 2.48percent).
Driven by persistent sell pressure in the month of June, investors in Nigeria’s equities market who held their stocks from the beginning of the year till the end of H1 were in no small measure beaten by a huge loss of about N1.3trillion. Neither increasing oil prices nor declining inflation rate could spur investors’ appetite for Nigeria’s equities in H1 amid pressured parallel FX market.
In terms of volume, brokers that took the lead in H1 ahead of others are Cardinalstone Securities Limited (7.321billion units), which represents 7.96percent of the total volume of stocks exchanged on the Bourse in six months to June 30.
Only ten stockbroking firms exchanged 39.342billion units of companies shares, representing 42.78percent of the total volume traded on the NGX in the review period.
Amid reduced participation by institutional investors in the equities market and sustained investor preference for risk-free securities, Nigeria’s stock market witnessed subdued buy activities in H1 which resulted to a remarkable dip. The market’s negative return in H1, 2021 stood at -5.87percent.
Other top stockbroking firms in terms of volume of stocks they exchanged are Morgan Capital Securities Limited (6.933billion units or 7.54percent), Meristem Stockbrokers Limited (5.452billion units or 5.93percent), Stanbic IBTC Stockbrokers Limited (4.549billion or 4.95percent), Atlass Portfolios Limited (3.728billion units or 4.05percent), and GTI Securities Limited (3.184billion units or 3.46percent).
Greenwich Trust Limited exchanged 2.213billion units of companies shares in H1 representing 2.41percent; Lighthouse Capital Limited (2.181billion units or 2.37percent); FBN Quest Securities Limited (1.897billion units or 2.06percent), and CSL Stockbrokers Limited (1.880billion units or 2.05percent).
Going into this second half (H2), investors are expected to take advantage of cheap/attractive stocks while also positioning in counters known for paying interim dividends to shareholders. Though, an uptick in the fixed income (FI) space will continue to weigh on Nigeria’s stock market performance.
