By Nkiruka Nnorom

Investors’ appetite for small cap stocks not exposed to vagaries of foreign investors’ bargain hunting led to significant increase in the shares of some of such stocks with three of them leading on the top 10 performers last week. Analysts had said at the turn of the year that small cap stocks are rarely patronized by foreign and institutional investors for lack of liquidity and hence they are less susceptible to capital flight and global investor sentiment.

File photo: The floor of Stock exchange

According to them, they will continue to deliver positive returns to investors/shareholders in the current year.

The shares of Costain W/A Plc, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc, Learn Africa Plc, Dangote Flour Mills Plc and Airline Services and Logistics, ASL Plc therefore closed as the top five gainers during the week.

These were followed by the shares of FCMB Group Plc, Nestle Foods Nig. Plc, Glaxosmithkline Plc, Beta Glass Co. (Nig.) Plc and A.G Leventis (Nig.) Plc.

Costain (W/A) Plc, which has been enjoying investors’ patronage despite some negatives surrounding it emerged top on the list with 34.29 percent or N0.24 price appreciation, closing at N0.94 from N0.70. The company is known for its failure to update the investors with information regarding its financial position. As it is, Costain is yet to publish its audited 2013 full year financial reports and accounts, while its 2014 quarterly financial results are yet to hit the market. The only positive news on the company in almost two years was the refutal of receivership claims on the company by First Bank of Nigeria in 2013 over a trade debt. First Bank had obtained a court order for the appointment of a receiver manager against Costain in respect of a trade debt that arose in the normal course of business.

Neimeth came second on the list with 19.18 percent or N0.14 increase, closing at N0.87 from N0.73. The company has just commenced construction of a N5 billion Pharma Complex in Anambra State. Available 2014 full year financial result of the company was not tasteful as it recorded loss before tax (LBT) of N198 million, loss after tax (LAT) of N228.5 million and eight percent decrease in shareholders’ fund. According to the company, production difficulties arising from replacement of obsolete/ non-GMP(Good Manufacturing Practice) compliant machines jointly contributed to the bad financial position in 2014.

Learn Africa ranked third with 18.90 percent or N0.24 price increase from N1.27 at the beginning of the week to N1.51. Two years ago, the two majority shareholders – Pearson Education Limited and Longman Group (Overseas Holdings) Limited -divested their combined 51 percent holdings in company. However, the company has overcome the initial challenges arising from the divestment and is ready to return to profitability. In

2013, it announced 42.89 percent decrease in revenue to N1.044 billion from N1.803 billion in December, 2012. Though the cost of sales improved slightly, the company  ended the year with a pretax loss of  N132.397 million from profit position of N8.008 million in 2012, representing 1,753 percent decrease.

Dangote Flour Mills trailed far behind with 14.75 percent or N0.63 increase to close at N4.90 from N4.27. The company’s 2014 audited reports and accounts showed that it is continuing in its streak of losses as it recorded N2.99 billion loss before tax for the year ended December 31, 2014 as against N2.88 billion loss before tax achieved in the same period in 2013. Similarly, it posted loss after tax of N2.92 billion compared to N2.81 billion recorded during the previous year. Also, the finance cost rose by 10.2 percent to N761.538 million from N690.928 million in the previous quarter.

ASL advanced by 14.71 percent or N0.25 to close at N1.95 from N1.70; FCMB rose by 13.52 percent or N0.43 to close at N3.61 from N3.18; Nestle went up by 11.47 percent or N107.45, rising from N936.60 to N1, 044.05; GSK added 10.23 percent or N5.22 to close at N56.26 from N51.04; Beta Glass appreciated by 10.22 percent or N2.42 to close at N26.11 from N23.69, while A.G Leventis advanced by 9.68 percent or N0.12 to close at N1.36 from N1.24 per share.