BY FESTUS OKOROMADU, ABUJA
PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc, the multinational consumer products manufacturer has announced plans to join the list of companies exiting the Nigerian Exchange Limited.
The firm, in a statement, said its core shareholder, PZ Cussons (Holdings) Limited, intends to acquire the shares held by all other shareholders of the company at an offer price of ₦21 per share, subject to prevailing market conditions.
If the proposed transaction is approved and completed, the company will have zero free float and thus be delisted from the Exchange.
According to a press release, the PZ Cussons Group explained that the action was necessary to enable it to simplify and strengthen operations in Nigeria, creating the foundations for the Nigerian business to deliver against its strategy, building a more agile and innovative business.
It noted that PZ Cussons has been present in Nigeria since 1899 and expects Nigeria to remain an important market for the Group for many years to come.
Analysts believe the reasons the company stated for its proposed buyout underscores the need for the Exchange to reevaluate its value proposition to quoted companies.
Quoted companies should ordinarily have the advantage of visibility, innovation, liquidity, and strength supported by market conditions and guidance.
This proposed delisting action lines up PZCN with peers like Oando and GSK, who have also put forth delisting plans.
The effective delisting of these companies, coupled with Ardova Petroleum Plc’s recent delisting earlier in the year, potentially reduces the array of investment options available to investors in the market that has faced challenges in attracting new listings this year.
Market operators argued that the limited consideration of delisting actions has had no discernible impact on investor sentiment.
Instead, the market is setting new records, and year-to-date returns are soaring.
Analysts attribute the ongoing market rally primarily to the consolidation shots of high-net-worth individuals and the robust trading activities of institutional investors.
Market advocates argue that delisting, especially when accompanied by higher offer prices, results in minority shareholders realizing higher investment values.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Equities Market closed positively for the second day in the week on Tuesday as the key market indicator advanced by 55.54 basis points amid mixed market breadth.
The NGX All-Share Index advanced by 0.08 percent to close at 68,334.68 basis points against the 1.11 gain recorded previously to close at 68,279.14 basis points at the end of the last trading session.
In Naira terms, the NGX Market CAP records an N30.40bn gain.
Year to date, the NGXASI stood at 33.33 percent at the close of trading on Tuesday.
The total volume traded declined by 34.04 percent to close at N557.85m, valued at N10.21bn and traded in 9,818 deals.
The shares of UBA was the most traded stock by volume with N63.32m, while GTCO was the most traded stock by value with N1.53bn units traded.
Sectoral performance was broadly negative as 10 sector indexes closed southward, five sector indexes closed northward, and three closed flat. NGX-FOOD AND BEVERAGES Index advanced by 1.98 percent to top the gainer’s chart, NGX-GROWTH Index declined by 1.49 percent to top the loser’s chart, while NGX-ASEM, NGX-OIL AND GAS and NGX-SOVBND closed flat.
The Gote index advanced by 0.57 percent to close at 213.06 basis points, while the Toni index declined by 1.18 percent at 310.10 basis points.
At the close of trading, the market recorded 30 gainers, 30 losers and 58 unchanged. BETAGLAS topped the list of gainers, while NSLTECH topped the list of losers.
UBA led the volume chart with a contribution of 11.35 percent, followed by OANDO and FIDELITYBK, while the value chart was topped by GTCO with a 14.97 percent contribution, followed by ZENITHBK and DANGSUGAR.