Centum stock hits all-time high on coal power contract

Centum hit an all-time high on Friday as local investors took positions on the counter after it clinched a contract to set up Kenya’s single-largest power plant in Lamu. In the past week, local investors have been bullish on Centum and Britam, with Centum closing the week at Sh55.50 a share.

Britam earlier touched its own all-time high of Sh27.50 Thursday. Centum has been one of the biggest gainers in the market this year, with its year-to-date gains approaching 60 per cent.

“Investors were responding positively to news of Centum winning a $2 billion contract, in conjunction with Gulf Energy, to construct a 1,000 megawatt coal plant in Lamu,” said Standard Investment Bank (SIB) in its weekly market note to clients.

READ: Kirubi, Ahmednasir in dog fight for coal power tender

Britam has attracted local investor interest since posting positive half-year results recently, with the market also factoring in its acquisition drive which will see it entrench its position in the real-estate sector through a stake in Housing Finance. The stock, however, retreated slightly on Friday to close the week at Sh26.75 per share.

Ahead of the release of its full-year results, Uchumi lost 4.4 per cent during the week to close at Sh11.90, although Friday’s trading session saw it recover some ground by gaining 3.4 per cent on the day. According to SIB, the retailer will likely post slightly weaker numbers as it continues to be outpaced by its competitors.

Stocks with approaching register closures ahead of dividend were on the up in the past week.

Safaricom, which closes its books on a final dividend of 47 cents a share on September 12 was up two per cent on foreign investor demand. Other stock closing books this week include EABL on a final dividend of Sh4 a share today. Nation Media Group closes books on an interim dividend of Sh2.50 a share on the same day as BOC Gases, for Sh2.20 a share, Friday.

In the week when it touched a six-year high of 5,163 points, the NSE 20-share index closed at 5,160 points, with the high level sustained by gains in blue-chip counters.

The All share Index touched its record high of 160 points during the week but closed Friday on a losing note as it slid back to 157 points, weighed down by profit taking on the small and medium cap counters.