The Nigerian All-Share Index surged 6.95% in the week ended 20 February 2026 to close at 194,989.77, gaining 12,676.69 points on sustained buying in large-cap stocks.
Trading activity strengthened significantly, with 7.6 billion shares exchanged in 345,118 deals, compared to 4.6 billion shares recorded in the previous week.
Market capitalization advanced 6.95% to N125.2 trillion from N117.02 trillion in the preceding week, reflecting the broad-based upward movement in share prices.
A total of 71 equities appreciated during the week, fewer than 79 in the previous week, while 41 declined, higher than 27, and 36 stocks closed unchanged.
What the data is saying
According to trading data, the index’s weekly advance lifted its month-to-date return to 17.91% and pushed its year-to-date performance higher to 25.30%.
- The market closed in positive territory in four of five trading sessions, with Monday delivering the strongest rally as the index jumped 7,968.5 points to break above the 190,000 mark for the first time.
- Although the market slipped on Tuesday to close at 189,362.9, it rebounded the following day and sustained the bullish momentum through Friday, ending the week at 194,989.8.
The NGX Premium Index rose 9.19%, driven by gains in First Holdco (12.15%), Lafarge (11.41%), Dangote Cement (10.13%), MTN Nigeria (10.03%), Seplat (8.33%), Zenith Bank (6.27%), Access Holdings (4.44%), and UBA (1.45%).
Meanwhile, the NGX 30 Index rose 6.96%, while the NGX Main Board Index advanced 5.60%, reflecting broad strength across major market segments.
Sectoral performance
Sectoral performance was led by the NGX Industrial Goods Index, which advanced 10.10% on the back of strong gains in BUA Cement (9.38%), Lafarge (11.41%), and Dangote Cement (10.13%).
- Among mid- and small-cap counters within the industrial space, Beta Glass surged 21%, while Cutix recorded a 6.18% gain.
The NGX Oil & Gas Index followed with an 8.66% increase, driven largely by Aradel (9.73%) and Seplat (8.33%), while JapaulGold soared 60.16% and Eterna added 4.84%.
Elsewhere, the NGX Consumer Goods Index rose 6.10%, with the NGX Banking Index up 5.68% and the NGX Insurance Index gaining 4.73%, reflecting widespread sectoral strength.
Top Gainers
The top-performing stocks for the week were:
- Zichis Agro-Allied Industries Plc: up 60.74% to N17.36
- JapaulGold & Ventures Plc: up 60.16% to N4.02
- Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank Plc: up 59.09% to N15.75
- Fortis Global Insurance Plc: up 53.85% to N0.60
- Jaiz Bank Plc: up 32.53% to N11.00
- Red Star Express Plc: up 30.67% to N31.95
- Custodian Investment Plc: up 27.96% to N70.25
- Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc: up 26.05% to N5.42
- NASCON Allied Industries Plc: up 24.07% to N164.95
- Presco Plc: up 21.86% to N2,315.40
Top losers
The week’s worst-performing stocks included:
- RT Briscoe Plc: down 20.78% to N13.80
- Mecure Industries Plc: down 18.99% to N84.25
- Tripple Gee & Company Plc: down 18.80% to N5.40
- Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc: down 17.14% to N2.32
- Ellah Lakes Plc: down 14.67% to N12.80
- Union Dicon Salt Plc: down 11.96% to N18.40
- Deap Capital Management & Trust Plc: down 10.14% to N7.62
- Multiverse Mining & Exploration Plc: down 10.00% to N25.20
- DAAR Communications Plc: down 9.83% to N2.66
- Caverton Offshore Support Group Plc: down 9.62% to N7.05
Corporate actions overview
The week featured a wave of corporate disclosures across the market.
- VFD Group launched its Series 1 commercial paper, targeting N15 billion.
- Oando Plc sought NGX approval to list 4.4 billion shares from its rights issue and also provided updates on its tranche 2 share distribution.
- JapaulGold & Ventures Plc announced the commencement of test runs at its pilot gold processing plant in Libeli, Niger State, ahead of full operations scheduled for May 2026.
- ARM Investment Managers declared a distribution for unitholders of the MoFI Real Estate Investment Trust.
- SCM Capital Asset Management announced a distribution of N18 per unit for Frontier Fund holders.
- Guinness Nigeria Plc filed its financial statement for the period ended 31 December 2025.
What you should know
The All-Share Index’s 6.95% weekly gain, up from 6.16% previously, signals strengthening bullish momentum as it breached 194,000 points and edged close to 195,000.
- The surge was not driven by price appreciation alone, as trading volume crossed 7 billion shares, reflecting heightened investor participation.
- Large-cap stocks accounted for much of the rally, as positive sentiment swept across heavyweight counters and lifted overall market performance.
However, technical indicators suggest the market is currently overbought, though sustained momentum in select large- and mid-cap stocks could still push the index higher.
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