Nigerian Stocks Add ₦5.5 Trillion as Rally Pushes Market into Overbought Territory

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By Boluwatife Oshadiya

Key Points

• Investors gain ₦5.5 trillion in one week
• NGX All-Share Index rises 3.96% to 225,724.33 points
• Market capitalisation hits ₦145.34 trillion
• Broad-based rally with positive market breadth (1.15x)
• Analysts warn of potential slowdown as stocks enter overbought zone

Main Story
The Nigerian equities market extended its bullish momentum last week, delivering a ₦5.5 trillion gain in investor wealth as strong buying interest, supported by first-quarter 2026 earnings releases, drove a broad-based rally across key sectors.

The benchmark NGX All-Share Index (ASI) advanced by 3.96% week-on-week to close at 225,724.33 points, while total market capitalisation rose by 3.94% to ₦145.34 trillion. The performance lifted the market’s year-to-date return to 45.05%, underscoring sustained investor confidence and elevated risk appetite.

Market breadth remained positive at 1.15x, with 53 gainers outpacing 46 decliners, indicating that the rally was supported by widespread participation rather than isolated gains in a few heavyweight stocks.

Trading activity also strengthened during the period, reflecting increased investor engagement. Total deals rose by 16.74%, while trading volume and value increased by 6.04% and 9.58%, respectively. In total, 3.81 billion shares valued at ₦214.44 billion were exchanged across 298,015 deals.

Sectoral performance was largely positive, with the Industrial Goods index leading gains, advancing by 7.07% on the back of strong demand for bellwether stocks such as Dangote Cement, Lafarge Africa, CAP, and Berger.

The Banking sector followed with a 6.81% gain, driven by renewed investor interest in FBN Holdings, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, and Wema Bank. The Consumer Goods sector also recorded a 5.56% increase, supported by sustained buying in NASCON Allied Industries, PZ Cussons Nigeria, and Union Dicon.

The Oil & Gas sector posted a modest gain of 0.86%, reflecting cautious buying sentiment, while the Insurance sector lagged with a 0.40% increase. Meanwhile, the commodity index declined slightly by 0.41%, indicating softer sentiment in that segment.

On the performance table, UACN led the gainers with a 42.0% surge, followed by Union Dicon (+32.7%), NASCON (+32.6%), Transcorp Express (+30.6%), and Zichis (+25.7%), largely driven by speculative and momentum-based trades.

Conversely, Abbey Mortgage Bank (-33.3%), Guinea Insurance (-15.2%), Stanbic IBTC Holdings (-13.8%), LivingTrust Mortgage Bank (-11.0%), and Sovereign Trust Insurance (-10.1%) recorded the steepest declines, reflecting profit-taking and sustained sell pressure.

What’s Being Said
Cowry Asset Management Limited noted that while the market outlook remains broadly positive, the pace of gains may begin to moderate as investors increasingly lock in profits, particularly in stocks that have recorded significant appreciation.

“This suggests a shift from broad-based buying to a more selective approach, where attention is focused on fundamentally strong and undervalued stocks,” the firm stated.

“Notably, while momentum indicators still point to continued upward movement, some are approaching overbought levels as an early signal that the market may be nearing a short-term peak.”

“This raises the likelihood of a consolidation phase or mild pullback in the near term. In addition, subtle signs such as easing trading volumes and less consistent breadth suggest that participation may be thinning beneath the surface.”

What’s Next
Market analysts expect the equities market to maintain a positive bias in the near term, supported by liquidity inflows and earnings momentum. However, a period of consolidation or mild correction is increasingly likely as overbought conditions trigger profit-taking and a shift toward selective stock picking.