The shares of the leading FMCG company declined by 8.64% to close the first quarter lower at N1,375.
Nestlé Nigeria Plc lost a total of N103 billion in market capitalization in the first quarter of 2021, following the decline in the shares of the leading fast-moving consumer goods company.
The decline in the shares of the famed producer of the popular Milo beverage brand was driven by sustained sell-down by investors in the months of February and March, triggered by the need to cycle funds into fixed-income securities.
The move which dropped the shares of the company by 8.64% on the NSE, pressured the company’s market capitalization to about N1.090 trillion at the end of the first quarter of 2021.
Data tracked on the website of the Nigerian Stock Exchange revealed that Nestlé’s shares declined from N1,505 per share on the 31st of December 2020, to N1,375 per share on the 31st of March 2021. This translates to a N130 per share or 8.64% decline in the shares of Nestlé.
In line with this, the market capitalization of Nestlé Nigeria Plc declined from N1.193 trillion on the 31st of December 2020, to N1.090 trillion on the 31st of March.
Nestlé Nigeria was not the only FMCG company impacted by the sell-off which started in February. Other FMCG companies like Unilever, PZ and Cadbury saw their shares on the Exchange decline by 3.6%, 8.49% and 8.33% respectively during the quarter.
The NSE Consumer Goods Index, an investable benchmark designed to track the performance of consumer goods companies like Nestlé Nigeria Plc, depreciated by 5.30% in the first quarter of 2021.
The index lost a total of 30.41 index points between 31st of December 2020 and 31st of March 2021, following sustained sell down in the shares of listed consumer goods companies on the NSE.
