Uganda: Batu, Jubilee Counters Post Highest Gains of the Week

Source from:  The Monitor (Kampala) 4 December 2007 12/04/2007

LAST week turned out as one the best weeks of the Uganda stock market with first-rate trading deals across all the local stock counters. Besides actively trading, the counters also registered significant increases in their share price. British America Tobacco emerged the week's top gainer adding a fresh Shs70 on each of its shares. The tobacco leaf exporter registered a total exchange of 50,000 shares as investors bought more in anticipation of the company's better full year results. Insurance company Jubilee Holdings Limited also registered a rise in share price by Shs63 but without any volumes traded. The cross listed company which has for the past few weeks suffered from a strain of diminishing share price opened the week at Shs5,190 but closed the week at Shs5,253. Mr Njoroge Ng'ang'a, the general manager of Dyer and Blair Investment Bank said that the cross listed companies have experienced a dip in the past due to the imminent Kenyan elections. "Many investors were holding back their shares because of what might happen as a result confidence in some shares dropped and price slightly changed. However, investors have now gained confidence in the market because they believe that the government can separate politics from business," he said. Media group New Vision Limited (NVL)'s share price touched its all-time-high at Shs1,000 rising by Shs60 from its weeks opening price. The counter registered a volume of 9,290 shares in trade in just two days. Analysts said the company's share price surged against news of the companies intentions to sell more shares to amass capital to fund its billion shilling expansion projects. The current NVL investors will be given an opportunity to buy more shares from the company at a discount and subsequently grow their wealth. The company intends to invest in its printing division and further strengthen its electronic media investments that have taken off. The companies that registered gains include; Development Finance Company of Uganda and Bank of Baroda Uganda. Stanbic bank limited share price managed to break its 2-weeks jinx to move up by a paltry Shs5 but remained the most active counter because of relative demand and supply of shares. Another, cross listed company East African Breweries and Uganda Clays (UCL) registered Shs30 increase on each of their share prices with the latter registering only 1,600 in volumes traded. But regulators say capital markets warn that the rising prices have the potential of falling as well. Enditem