The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) closed the week in the green territory, with the Nairobi All Share Index (NASI) rising 2.1% to 209.65 points from 205.34 points in the previous week.
The rally was driven by gains recorded by large-cap stocks such as Safaricom, Equity Group, and Stanbic Holdings, which gained 8.4%, 1.7%, and 1.4%, respectively. The NSE 25 and NSE 10 both gained by 0.6% to 5,700.71 points and 2,148.33 points, respectively, while the NSE 20 declined by 0.4% to 3,532.68 points. The Banking Sector Index declined by 1.7% to 232.02 points, attributable to losses recorded by Absa Bank Kenya (-7.9%), Co-op Bank (-6.1%), and StanChart (-4.6%).
Market activity remained vibrant during the week. The volume of shares traded reached 112.93 million, up from 58.9 million, representing a 91.7% increase from the previous week. Equity turnover increased sharply by 90.7% to KES 4.37 billion from KES 2.29 billion in the preceding week.
NSE Top Gainers
Sameer Africa emerged the top gainer, rising by 16.4%, followed by Crown Paints Kenya which advanced by 12.0%. Car and General rose by 9.9%, while Sasini Plc advanced by 9.6%. Safaricom Plc rounded out the list, rising by 8.4%, supported by stellar FY26 results. Safaricom plc posted a 37.0% growth in profit attributable to shareholders to KES 95.6 billion. The Group declared a final dividend of KES 1.15, up 77% from KES 0.65 per share in FY25.
NSE Top losers
On the losers’ side, Flame Tree Group was the biggest laggard, recording a double-digit decline of 12.2%. Absa Bank Kenya ranked second after dropping by 7.9%, followed by Kenya Airways which declined by 6.2%. Co-operative Bank and Nation Media Group fell by 6.1% and 5.7%, respectively.
Safaricom Plc Dominates
Safaricom plc dominated the market, accounting for 27.4% of the total market turnover. Other actively traded counters included Equity Group, KCB Group, Bank of Kigali, and Stanbic Holdings. The counters recorded turnovers of KES 1.0 billion, KES 639.25 million, KES 394.51 million, and KES 210.69 million, respectively.
Foreign Investors Participation
Foreign investors remained bearish, recording net outflows of KES 751.2 million compared to KES 8.33 million in the preceding week. Foreign investor turnover accounted for KES 1.8 billion, equivalent to KES 40.8% of total market turnover.
Fixed Income Segment
The fixed income segment lost momentum, with bond turnover decreasing by 32.2% to 22.3 billion from KES 32.9 billion. Meanwhile, the bond index remained largely unchanged at 1,174.19 compared to 1,174.18 in the previous week.
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