Dangote Cement plans global offer, market gains 0.8%

By Udeme Ekwere with Agency Report

Tuesday, 19 Oct 2010

 

Dangote Cement Plc has disclosed plans to sell a 20 per cent stake through a global share offering in the next 18 months, as it gears up for a construction boom in Africa.

The Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Kunle Alake, told Reuters on Monday, that the Nigerian Stock Exchange had given the company two years to sell down a 20 per cent stake in the newly listed entity in order to comply with the minimum 25 per cent free float requirement.

Dangote Cement is set to list 100 million shares by introduction on a special offer at N135 per share next week Tuesday.

The planned share offering will be one of the biggest ever by an indigenous company in sub-Saharan Africa.

According to Alake, ”Preferably within 18 months, I think we should be able to complete the exercise. There will be a global offering most likely within the next 18 months.

”It will be an offer for sale, so Dangote Industries Limited will be divesting 20 per cent to meet the listing requirement. At this point, the decision is not to do a strategic placement. We are looking at making it open to every investor.”

Meanwhile, major buying activities continued on the NSE, driving market indicators significantly.

The market capitalisation of the 199 listed equities rose by 0.8 per cent or N49bn from N6.145tn last Friday, to close at N6.194tn, while the NSE‘s All-Share Index rose by 0.8 per cent or 200.50 points to close at 25,278.23, up from 25,077.73 points.

Activities in the banking sub-sector continued to drive total volume, as it accounted for 59 per cent of turnover.

In the sub-sector, investors staked N1.59bn on 180.024 million shares in 3,082 transactions.

Volume in the sub-sector was driven by trading in the shares of United Bank for Africa Plc, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc. Trading in these stocks accounted for 56 per cent of the sub-sector‘s turnover.

Oando Plc recorded the highest price gain for the day, leading 49 other stocks with an appreciation of five per cent or N3.15 to close at N66.15 per share.

On the other hand, Guinness Nigeria Plc led 16 other losers, shedding 2.7 per cent or N4.92 to close at N185.13 per share.

Source: Punch

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