Dangote Cement Plc, owned by Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, has crossed the ₦20 trillion market value mark for the first time on the Nigerian Exchange after its shares rose by the daily 10% limit for two consecutive trading sessions.
The company’s shares gained ₦111.10 on Monday to close at a record ₦1,222.10 in Lagos, pushing its market capitalisation to ₦20.62 trillion. The stock had closed at ₦1,111 on Friday after also recording a 10% gain.
Dangote Cement shares have now doubled in value this year, rising from ₦609 at the beginning of January.
Dangote, Africa’s richest person, owns about 14.65 billion shares, representing roughly 86.8% of the cement maker. Most of his holdings are held through Dangote Industries Ltd., the holding company he controls, while he owns a smaller stake directly.
At Monday’s closing price, his stake was worth approximately ₦17.9 trillion, equivalent to $13.1 billion at the official exchange rate of ₦1,365 to the dollar. The latest rise added about ₦1.63 trillion, or $1.19 billion, to its value.
The rally also boosted the wider Nigerian stock market. Dangote Cement now represents about 12.6% of the Nigerian Exchange’s total market value. The All-Share Index rose 1.65% to 251,290.54 points on Monday, while the total value of listed equities increased by ₦2.64 trillion to a record ₦163.16 trillion.
Investors are also watching the company’s upcoming third-quarter results. Its board was scheduled to meet on Tuesday to review earnings for the three months ended September 30.
During the first half of the year, revenue rose 21.4% to ₦2.51 trillion, while profit after tax increased 22.7% to ₦638.5 billion. Cement volumes grew 11.8% to 14.9 million tonnes, and exports from Nigeria climbed 62.3%.
Dangote Cement is also preparing for a potential London listing, which could allow existing shareholders to sell about 10% of the company in a deal valued at roughly $1 billion as early as November. The company’s primary listing would remain in Lagos.
Meanwhile, Dangote’s petroleum refinery is closing its initial public offering on Tuesday. The refinery is offering 4.1 billion new shares at ₦525 each, aiming to raise about ₦2.15 trillion. The company expects its shares to begin trading on the Nigerian Exchange in December.
The latest developments highlight Dangote’s growing business interests across cement, refining and other industries, as investors monitor the performance of his companies in Nigeria’s capital market.
