allAfrica.com: Nigeria: BankPHP Emerges Top Stock As NSE Addresses Arbitrary Price Increase (Page 1 of 2)

BankPHB Plc emerged the stock of the week on the Nigerian Stock last week. It achieved this by posting the least Price Earnings (PE) ratio among all the companies that appeared on the price gainers' chart throughout the week under review. It posted a PE ratio of 13.64 as at Tuesday, April 22, 2008. Also, its EPS stood at N2.25 at the same day.

Okereke-Onyiuke

BankPHB have carved a niche for itself in the nation's financial landscape. The bank is known for churning out creative products that have held the market spellbound over the years.

It has consistently introduced creative products targeted at making life easier for its customers. It has gone on record as the bank with the most financial products. Some of its products include: Naira Credit Card, PHB Paytime, PHB EasyLife, Shares Acquisition Scheme, SALAD Instanta among many others.

To this end, the bank was named the Most Innovative Bank, in the Second edition of Vanguard's Nigerian Bankers' Award, that was held recently in Lagos.

In addition, a major reason that may have accounted for the interest it has generated in the minds of investors, is its impressive third quarter financial results that it recently released to the investing community.

The bank announced a strong financial performance in the third quarter result released to the Nigerian Stock exchange (NSE) confirming its consistent choice by analysts and national media as Nigeria's fastest growing bank.

The result shows that its nine months earnings in 2008 is already 52 percent higher than its 2007 full year earnings while its profit before tax for the same nine month period surpassed 2007 full year profit before tax by 85 percent.

The result for the nine month period ending March 31, 2008 shows a strong 167 percent growth in gross earnings to N55.18 billion compared to N20.71 billion in March 2007. Its Profit before tax for the period under review stood at N19.03 billion which is 229 percent higher than the N5.79 billion profit before tax for the corresponding period of March 2007, while its profit after tax stood at N14.85 billion, a similar 229 percent growth on its profit after tax of N4.51 billion in March 2007.

The percentage growth rates shown in the results shows that it is maintaining its above industry average growth rate. Analysis of the bank's financials last year had shown it growing its earnings and profits at about three times the average growth rate of the Nigerian banking industry.

To this end, the bank's stocks remains a good buy for every investor because of the enormous potential it possesses.

Meanwhile, the NSE introduced a new measure that is designed to check the arbitrary rise in the share prices of redundant companies on the capital market.

The measure exempts companies that do not have up to 100,000 units of shares on the market from price movement. That is there will be no upward or downward movement in the share prices of such companies.

It should be noted that stakeholders in the capital market have been criticizing the unrealistic upward price movements in the shares of redundant companies on the Exchange. These redundant companies have either closed shop or are experiencing one problem or the other which could ordinarily make the price static or falling. But this is not the case with such companies on the NSE.

Companies which have attracted the interest of stakeholders in this regard, include: Afroil Plc, Juli Plc, IPWA Plc, BCN Plc, Liz-Olofin and Company Plc, Capital Oil among others.

The issue also attracted the interest of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), who decided to conduct an investigation into the arbitrary price movement of six companies, it later suspended trading on two out of the lot being investigated.

With this directive, it is expected that sanity would return to the market as the unrealistic price movements, that defy sound economic principles would be curtailed, thereby increasing investors' confidence in the market

In another development, the declining trend of the performance indices continued in the week under review, as the All-share index and market capitalisation both dropped by 1.66 per cent and 1.40 per cent each. The index closed at 60,399.68 points from 61,418.96 points at which it opened the week, while the capitalisation closed at N11.68 trillion from N11.71 trillion.

Analysis of trading for the week under review shows that on Monday, April 21, 2008, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated recorded the highest share price gain, rising by N9.80 to close at N240.90 per share from N231.10 per share at which it opened, it recorded a turnover of 198,189 shares valued at N46.24 million, it posted an Earnings Per Share (EPS) of N13.80 and a Price Earnings (PE) ratio of 17.46, Okomu Oil Palm Plc followed with a gain of N1.57 to close at N32.99 per share, it traded 129.753 shares valued at N4.0 million, its EPS stood at N0.29 while its PE ratio stood at 113.76, Cadbury Nigeria gained N1.50 to close at N38.00 per share, it recorded a turnover of 280,582 shares valued at N10.61 million.

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