Companies led by Nigerian billionaire investors Herbert Wigwe, Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola, and Jim Ovia collectively recorded an astounding capital gain of N3.1 trillion in 2023.
These firms—Geregu, Zenith Bank, Access Holdings, Dangote Cement, NASCON, and FBN Holdings—are listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
These tycoons exert control through significant stakes or leadership roles as CEOs, chairmen, or co-founders even though they do not hold all the shares of these companies.
Their accomplishments unfolded against a backdrop of challenges, including a forex crisis, naira devaluation, and inflationary pressures.
NGX performance in 2023
Looking holistically at the Nigerian stock exchange, on the last trading day of 2023, the NGX displayed renewed vigour, propelling the All-Share Index to an impressive 74,773.77 points, marking a year-to-date growth of 45.90%.
This robust market performance mirrored the commendable corporate feats of businesses owned by Nigeria’s affluent investors, ushering in substantial gains for their publicly traded ventures.
How their companies performed
Dr Herbert Wigwe, the astute Group Managing Director and co-founder of Access Holdings, Nigeria’s premier bank holding company, recorded an N517 billion augmentation in market capitalization.
A comprehensive breakdown reveals Access Holdings concluding the year with a market cap of N822.8 billion, signifying a noteworthy ascent from the N305.6 billion recorded in 2022.
- This uptrend was underscored by Access Holdings’ share price escalating from N8.50 in December 2022 to N23.15 at the close of December 2023.
- Access Holdings, securing the fifth spot on the roster of Nigerian companies with the highest profits as of September 2023, reported a nine-month pre-tax profit of N294.4 billion, denoting a formidable year-on-year surge of 100.2% from the corresponding period in the previous year.
- The group’s after-tax profit for the same interval, standing at N250.4 billion, representing an impressive 83% year-on-year upswing from the analogous period in 2022.
Aliko Dangote
Africa’s wealthiest individual, Aliko Dangote, and the luminary founder and chairman of Dangote Group, a diversified conglomerate with interests spanning cement, sugar, salt, flour, oil, and gas, recorded a staggering N1.1 trillion augmentation in market capitalization.
This positioned Dangote as one of the top gainers, following Abdul Samad Rabiu’s N2.2 trillion and Elumelu’s N1.6 trillion.
Dangote Cement, a flagship entity under its conglomerate, observed a commendable N1.03 billion market cap increase, with its share price ascending from N261 at the close of 2022 to N319.9 by the conclusion of 2023.
- Dangote Cement’s 9M 2023 financial report showcased substantial growth, with reported revenue reaching N1.515 trillion, constituting approximately 94% of the company’s full-year revenue in 2022.
- Correspondingly, the profit after tax for the same period stood at N277.54 billion, representing 72.6% of the full-year PAT for 2022.
- Despite challenging macroeconomic conditions, Dangote Cement’s 9M 2023 financial results underscore its resilience and potential to surpass its 2022 performance.
Additionally, NASCON, a subsidiary of Dangote’s conglomerate, witnessed a market cap gain of N112.9 billion, with a share price surge from N6 at the end of 2022 to N53.75 in 2023.
- NASCON Allied Industries emerged as the best-performing consumer goods stock on the NGX in 2023, displaying stellar market and financial performances.
Femi Otedola
Femi Otedola, chairman of Geregu Power Plc and former chairman of Forte Oil Plc (now Ardova Plc), experienced a notable N625 billion gains.
Geregu Power’s share price vaulted from N149 in 2022 to N399 in 2023, with its market capitalization escalating from N327.5 billion to N997.5 billion within the corresponding period.
- Geregu Power surpassed its 2022 full-year earnings of N10 billion within the first nine months of 2023, reporting a profit of N12 billion. The company, boasting total assets of N157.5 billion, stands as the sole power-generating entity quoted on the Nigeria Exchange.
Holding controlling stakes in FBN Holdings, the parent company of First Bank Limited, Otedola witnessed a commendable N437.9 billion surge in the company’s market capitalization.
- FBN Holdings achieved an annual gain of 116.1% on the NGX in 2023, closing the year at a share price of N23.55 compared to its opening price of N10.90 in December 2022.
- The group also attained a market capitalization of N845.3 billion, momentarily breaching the N1 trillion mark on December 6, 2023.
- FBN Holdings reported gross earnings of N922.2 billion, marking an 80.1% year-on-year increase from the N547.2 billion recorded in 2022.
Aligning with its robust market performance, the group’s financials for the nine months ending September 2023 reflected substantial strength, with a net income of N236.4 billion, indicating an impressive 159% year-on-year growth from the corresponding period in 2022.
Jim Ovia
Jim Ovia, the Chairman of Zenith Bank Plc, realized a substantial N436.4 billion gain in market capitalization in 2023, emblematic of the bank’s impressive performance.
Zenith Bank Plc posted an e-business income of N33.551 billion during the first nine months of 2023, representing a slight decrease of 6.98% compared to N36.069 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2022.
- As the most capitalized bank on the NGX, Zenith Bank accounted for 12.65% of the total e-business income generated by the eleven banks.
- Zenith Bank emerged as the highest profit earner, reporting a pre-tax profit of N505 billion in the nine months ending September 2023—a significant surge from the N202.5 billion reported during the corresponding period last year. Impressively, in just nine months, Zenith Bank surpassed its 2022 earnings, with the group’s profit after tax reaching N434.2 billion.