Best performing Nigerian stocks for the week ended August 7, 2026

First HoldCo Plc extended its strong run on the NGX supported by FCMB Group, while newly listed AVA Capital delivered a stunning 33.33% weekly surge, helping the Nigerian equities market close the week higher amid renewed buying interest in banking and select large-cap stocks.

First HoldCo led the banking rally with a 12.23% week-on-week gain to N145.40, while FCMB climbed 13.10% and AVA Capital jumped 33.33% to N11.00, providing fresh momentum to the market.

The renewed buying interest lifted the benchmark NGX All-Share Index (ASI) 0.12% week-on-week to 245,573.60 points from 245,283.68 points, while market capitalisation rose by approximately N187 billion to N158.51 trillion.

Consequently, the market’s year-to-date return improved to 57.81%, although market breadth remained decidedly negative, highlighting the concentration of gains in a handful of heavyweight and actively traded stocks.

What the data is saying:

Despite the positive performance of the benchmark index, market breadth remained negative, with 26 gainers against 63 losers, reflecting cautious investor sentiment as declining stocks continued to outnumber advancing stocks throughout the week.

• A total turnover of 5.359 billion shares worth N139.053 billion was traded in 261,869 deals, compared with 5.119 billion shares worth N404.762 billion that exchanged hands the previous week in 285,223 deals.
• The Financial Services Industry again led activity by volume, with 3.469 billion shares worth N73.013 billion traded in 117,509 deals, contributing 64.73% of total volume and 52.51% of total value.
• Oil & Gas followed with 1.023 billion shares worth N18.900 billion in 17,680 deals, while ICT ranked third with 232.368 million shares worth N14.624 billion in 31,866 deals.

The top three stocks by volume, Japaul Gold & Ventures, Fortis Global Insurance, and FCMB Group, accounted for 2.562 billion shares worth N14.173 billion in 6,645 deals, contributing 47.80% of total volume and 10.19% of total value.

Twenty-six equities appreciated in price during the week, lower than thirty-three the previous week, while sixty-three equities depreciated, higher than fifty-six previously. Fifty-eight equities remained unchanged, same as the prior week.

Market summary for the week

• All-Share Index: 245,573.60 points, up +0.12% week-on-week.
• Market capitalization: N158.513 trillion, up +0.12% week-on-week.
• Volume Traded: 5.359 billion shares, up +4.69% from 5.119 billion shares.
• Value Traded: N139.053 billion, down -65.64% from N404.762 billion.
• Total Deals: 261,869 deals, down -8.19% from 285,223 deals previously.

Sectoral performance:

Sectoral performance was mixed during the week, as renewed buying interest in banking and consumer goods stocks offset weakness across insurance, industrial goods, and oil & gas.

• The Banking Index emerged as the best-performing sector, advancing 2.33% to close at 2,586.38 points from 2,527.59 points, on the back of sustained investor demand for FCMB, First HoldCo, and Access Holdings.
• The Consumer Goods Index followed with a 1.97% gain to 7,078.25 points, supported by renewed buying interest in Vitafoam and NASCON.
• The Industrial Goods Index declined marginally by 0.17% to 10,507.25 points, reflecting mild profit-taking in CAP following recent gains.
• The Oil & Gas Index closed broadly flat, easing 0.03% to 5,240.85 points, as selective profit-taking offset buying interest in Oando and Japaul Gold.
• The Commodity Index dipped marginally by 0.01% to 1,743.53 points.

The Insurance Index recorded the weakest performance during the week, declining 3.31% to close at 1,160.35 points from 1,200.08 points, amid heightened selling pressure and profit-taking in Sovereign Trust Insurance, Consolidated Hallmark Holdings, and SUNU Assurances.

Top 10 Best-Performing Stocks:

• AVA Capital — up 33.33% to N11.00
• FCMB Group — up 13.10% to N12.95
• First HoldCo — up 12.23% to N145.40
• Fortis Global Insurance — up 11.11% to N2.60
• Linkage Assurance — up 10.63% to N1.77
• Caverton Offshore Support Group — up 10.00% to N5.50
• Eterna — up 10.00% to N36.30
• Nigeria Real Estate Investment Trust Fund — up 9.71% to N113.00
• Vitafoam Nigeria — up 7.90% to N194.00
• Cornerstone Insurance — up 4.63% to N5.65

Top 10 Worst-Performing Stocks:

• Thomas Wyatt Nigeria — down 26.71% to N3.21
• Trans-Nationwide Express — down 23.76% to N2.15
• Critical Minerals Financing Corporation — down 22.68% to N3.00
• Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) — down 18.94% to N72.10
• Consolidated Hallmark Holdings — down 16.51% to N6.98
• Sovereign Trust Insurance — down 16.50% to N1.67
• Multiverse Mining and Exploration — down 16.47% to N21.30
• Zichis Agro Allied Industries — down 12.22% to N21.55
• Legend Internet — down 11.58% to N4.20
• Sunu Assurances Nigeria — down 11.35% to N3.28

What you should know:

First HoldCo’s continued rally, up 12.23% for the week and now trading at N145.40, cements its position as the market’s most closely watched stock following its recent record H1 profit announcement, gaining N15.85 per share during the week alone and providing the single largest boost to heavyweight sentiment.

• Among large-cap stocks, ETI recorded the steepest decline, falling 18.94% to N72.10, placing pressure on broader banking sector sentiment even as the sector overall posted gains.
• The sharp divergence between the index’s marginal weekly gain and the broad negative market breadth underscores a market driven by concentrated buying in a handful of large-cap names, particularly First HoldCo and FCMB, rather than broad-based participation.

Looking ahead, analysts expect investors to continue positioning in fundamentally sound stocks as more earnings releases hit the market.

Going into the new trading week, market sentiment will likely remain driven by corporate earnings releases, dividend expectations, and developments in interest rates and fixed-income yields.