Airtel Africa, Ecobank, Stanbic IBTC top stocks to watch this week

The Nigerian bourse saw a surge of 4.25 per cent last week, with the NGX 30 (the index that tracks the top 30 stocks by liquidity and market capitalisation) touching an unprecedented height, both affirming investors’ renewed faith in stocks.

A number of first quarter earnings reports were issued and a couple of them were strikingly impressive, boosting confidence.

PREMIUM TIMES has assembled a number of stocks with fundamentals and other potential, adopting key analytical approaches to save you the hassle of randomly picking equities for investment.

The selection, a product of market analysis, offers a guide to entering the market and taking strategic positions in hopes that equities will gain value with the passage of time, particularly in the short term.

This is not a buy, sell or hold recommendation but a stock investment guide. You may have to involve your financial advisor before taking investment decisions.

AIRTEL AFRICA

Airtel Africa tops this week’s pick on the basis of recording an 82 per cent jump in after-tax profit to $755 million for 2021.

The wireless operator’s revenue surged by 20.6 per cent to $4.7 billion within the period.

ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED (ETI)

ETI appears on the selection for trading well below its intrinsic value. The lender’s earnings per share (EPS) at the end of the last trading session was N4.65, with a price-to-earnings (PE) ratio of 2.78x.

STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS

Stanbic IBTC makes this week’s selection for currently trading at its lowest price level in 52 weeks, making it a good entry point for investment.

The stock is priced at N33 per unit, with an EPS of N4.54 and a PE ratio of 7.71x.

SOVEREIGN TRUST INSURANCE

Sovereign Trust features on the pick for trading significantly below its real value, brightening its chances of seeing a good price appreciation in future.

The underwriter’s PE ratio was 3.03x as of the end of the last trading session, while its EPS is N0.09.

UNIVERSITY PRESS PLC (UPL)

UPL features in the pack for currently trading well below its intrinsic value. The company’s PE ratio as of Friday was 3.83x with a EPS ratio of N0.77.

STERLING BANK

Sterling Bank makes the selection for currently trading significantly below its actual value, which makes it cheap for investment. Its PE ratio at the last trading session was 3.01x while its EPS is N0.51.