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Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Equity share halts a one week slide


A section of the East African Breweries Ltd plant in Ruaraka, Nairobi. EABL said that Serengeti Breweries  sales remained flat at Sh7.1 bn. FILE 
A section of the East African Breweries Ltd plant in Ruaraka, Nairobi. EABL said that Serengeti Breweries sales remained flat at Sh7.1 bn. FILE
 
By CHARLES MWANIKI, cmwaniki@ke.nationmedia.com
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Equity Bank’s share halted a one week slide Tuesday as investors reacted to the disclosure by the Communications Authority of Kenya that the bank has applied for a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) licence.


The share closed the day at Sh32, almost one per cent up on Monday’s Sh31.75. The lender was also the day’s top mover with 8.11 million shares worth Sh259.9 million traded, including a block trade.
“The application could be seen as a step towards cutting reliance on incumbent telecommunications operators with regards to mobile commerce,” said Standard Investment Bank in a daily market summary note.

Tending downwards
The share had been tending downwards in the past one week, dropping 3.8 per cent (Sh33 to Sh31.75) in the week to Monday February 24.

Equity, with more than eight million customers, will likely offer mobile banking and payment services on the platform if it were to be licensed, opening up a new revenue stream.
East Africa Breweries Limited also continued with its rebound, consolidating with a 2.3 per cent rise in price to close at Sh270. The brewer had slipped to a closing low of Sh227 on February 19, meaning it has now gained 19 per cent in four sessions.

The company announced on February 14 that it would scale back operations at its bottling plant following a reduction in sales of its low price keg beer as a result of increased excise duty.
Total market turnover Tuesday rose by 130 per cent to Sh805 million on the back of the increased activity on the Equity stock.

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