Nigerian energy multimillionaire Austin Avuru has suffered a loss of N2.45 billion ($5.94 million) in the past 49 days from his stake in Nigeria’s leading energy supplier, Seplat Energy.
Seplat Energy is a leading Nigerian independent energy company and the largest listed oil company on the Nigeria Exchange (NGX). Avuru holds a beneficial 8.32-percent stake in the company, which amounts to 48,968,690 ordinary shares.
The multi-million-dollar loss in his stake can be attributed to a recent sell-down in Seplat’s share price, as investors anticipate the company’s Q3 financial results.
Due to investor profit-taking actions on the NGX, shares in the energy retailer have declined from a price of N770 ($$1.868) per share on Aug. 31 to N720 ($$1.7469) per share at the time of writing, accruing a 6.5-percent loss for the company’s shareholders in less than 50 days.
As a result of the decline in the share price, the market value of Avuru’s stake in the energy supplier has fallen from N37.71 billion ($91.49 million) on Aug. 31 to N35.26 billion ($85.55 million) on Oct. 19.
This translates to a loss of N2.45 billion ($5.94 million) for the multimillionaire in 49 days.
Avuru, who owned a total of 60,098,823 ordinary shares in Seplatin in early 2021, now has a total of 48,968,690 shares in his holding.
The reduction in his stake came after he sold off a beneficial 1.89-percent stake in the energy company in a deal worth about $1.35 million ($556.51 million).
The Nigerian tycoon also earned a total of $1.22 million in dividends from his stake. The dividend was paid from Seplat’s $62.1 million in profit in the first half of 2021.