The Nigerian Exchange (NGX) posted a moderate 16.57% year-to-date return in the first half of 2025; a slower pace compared to the 33.81% rally recorded during the same period last year.
Despite this, several individual stocks significantly outperformed the broader market, delivering triple-digit returns and signaling investor appetite for turnaround stories, growth plays, and speculative opportunities.
What drove the outperformance?
- Strong earnings surprises: Many top performers delivered breakout Q1 results that caught the market’s attention.
- Valuation re-ratings: Investors responded to stocks with low historical P/Es and recovering fundamentals.
- Speculative flows: Some penny and illiquid stocks gained sharply on sentiment, not just fundamentals.
- Sector rotation: Agriculture, healthcare, and industrials saw increased traction as investors diversified beyond banking and oil.
From Beta Glass’s fundamentals-backed rally to Smart Products’ speculative surge, the first half of 2025 produced a wide mix of winners; some still reasonably valued, others priced for perfection.
Here’s a closer look at the top 10 NGX stocks by share price performance.
Neimeth Pharmaceuticals delivered a standout 185% gain in the first half of 2025, including a massive 104% rally in June alone, placing it 6th among the NGX’s best performers.
The surge pushed its market cap to N27.9 billion, making it the 76th most valuable stock on NGX
The bullish run was largely driven by news that shareholders approved a N20 billion capital raise at the June AGM, fueling investor optimism.
Neimeth’s P/E of 2.35x suggests it’s still cheap based on earnings, but its very high P/B (17.36) and P/S (6.08) indicate it’s priced well above book and revenue values, meaning investors are paying a big premium for growth potential.
