Airtel Africa, a member of the SWOOT (Stocks Worth Over One Trillion), is now the most capitalized company listed on the Nigerian stock exchange.
The telco giant has displaced Dangote Cement, the cement producing giant owned by Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, from the leading the SCOOT team.
Airtel Africa, the second-largest telecoms company in Nigeria crossed the N5 trillion mark for the first time on Friday as the stock gained 9.9% to close at N5.4 trillion.
This is also the first time any Nigerian company has surpassed N5 trillion in Market Capitalization.
Airtel first surpassed Dangote Cement as the most capitalized stock on Thursday after it gained 10% closing at N1,271 per share.
Dangote Cement in contrast fell on Thursday by 8.53% from its 52-week high of N284.90 to close the trading session at N260.60, on profit-taking by investors. This saw Dangote’s market capitalization fall by N414.1 billion, from N4.86 trillion to N4.44 trillion. It remained flat on Friday, January 28.
Airtel on Friday gained another 9.9% taking its share price to N1,390 as it continued its bullish run. Airtel’s share price has now gained over 46% this year on the back of improved operational performance, share buybacks, and investor sentiments.
Recall that on January 5, Airtel’s share price recorded an all-time high of N1,050 after announcing the disposal of its tower assets in Tanzania.
Last November, Airtel Africa had received approval in principle to operate a payment service bank (PSB) and as a super-agent in Nigeria, expanding its business beyond the telecoms frontier.
Earlier in the week, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) announced that Airtel Africa Plc will be joining the FTSE 100 (Financial Times Stock Exchange) index.
The FTSE 100 Index comprises the 100 most highly capitalised blue chip companies, representing approximately 81 percent of the UK market.
It is used extensively as a basis for investment products, such as derivatives and exchange-traded funds.
Segun Ogunsanya, CEO of Airtel Africa, said the company have continued to invest in infrastructure and distribution network across the countries where they operate supporting their economies and communities.
“Sustainability is at the core of our strategy, driven by our guiding purpose of Transforming lives’ across Africa, with people, businesses and governments seeking access to more and better connectivity and improved financial inclusion,” he said.
“I am immensely proud that Airtel Africa will be joining the FTSE 100 only two and a half years after we listed on the London Stock Exchange.”
