Eromosele Abiodun
It was a harvest of capital gains for the shareholders of Transport Hotels Plc, Chams Holding Company Plc and CWG Plc, formerly Computer Warehouse Group, as they towered above the ten companies that topped the winners’ chart on Nigeria Exchange Limited (NGX) in capital appreciation in 2023; with price gain that ranged from 721.8 per cent to 1022 .9 per cent.
Transcorp Hotels Plc posted the highest capital appreciation as the share price jumped from N6.25 in 2022 to close at N70.18 on the last trading day of 2023, an increase of 1022.9 per cent. The company is subsidiary of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (TRANSCORP).
Its market capitalization rose to N718.8 billion at the last trading day of 2023. With a share price appreciation of 1022.9 per cent, Transcorp Hotels emerged the best performing stock on the NGX in 2023. The company’s share price started 2023 at N6.25 and closed 2023 at N70.18. The company’s market cap also hit N718.8 billion at the close of trading in 2023.
On its part, Chams Holdings Plc sustained its stella performance in 2023 as the frontline financial technology company’s share price rose by 795.5 per cent from N0.24 at the beginning of 2023 to close at N1.97. Chams HoldCo’s fundamentals are waxing stronger with a gross profit of N1.84 billion in nine months in 2023, a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) growth of 181.3 per cent from the corresponding period in 2022.
In a recent media interview, the Company’s Group Managing Director, Mrs Mayowa Olaniyan, attributed the performance to the gains from the on-going transformation in the entire group, which comprises ChamsSwitch, ChamsAccess, CardCentre, and ChamsMobile, its subsidiaries.
The third best price gainer in the review period was CWG Plc, whose share pricre rose from N0.92 at the start of 2023, to N3.96 per unit at the end of the trading day in 2023, an increase of 721.8 per cent. The company is one of the pioneers in the IT ecosystem in Nigeria. The company’s nine-month revenue was N18.26 billion in 2023, an increase of 79.7 per cent in the preceding year.
Apart from being a leading provider of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) across West, Central and Eastern Africa, the company is also a leading cloud service provider that enables Africa’s SMEs to exploit cloud services for commerce and management.
Other companies that made the league of the top ten were: Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (TRANSCORP) 676.4 per cent; MRS Oil Plc, 644.7 per cent; Northern Nigeria Floor Mills Plc, 639.8 per cent; Japaul Gold and Ventures, 507.1 per cent; Ikeja Hotels, 571.4 per cent; FTN Cocoa Processing, 410.3 per cent and Infinity Trust Mortgage Bank, 372.44 per cent.
Despite the headwinds that characterized the business environment in 2023, the NGX All-Share Index, a measure of capital gains was up by 45.9 per cent to close at an all-time high of 74, 773. 77 points while the market capitalisation closed at N40.92 trillion.
