Abdul Samad Rabiu, Nigeria’s second-richest man, has lost a total of $180.6 million in the market value of his stake in BUA Foods over the past 28 days, as investors on the Nigerian Exchange reduced their holdings in the newly listed food company.
BUA Foods is a consolidated food business controlled by Rabiu, a Nigerian industrialist who owns 99.8 percent of the business. The company combines the operations of BUA Sugar Refinery Limited, BUA Oil Mills Limited, IRS Flour, IRS Pasta and BUA Rice Limited.
As of press time Feb. 11, shares in BUA Foods were trading at N61.8 ($0.1478) per share; at this price, the company’s market capitalization is valued at N1.11 trillion ($2.7 billion), making it the second-most capitalized consumer goods company on the Nigerian Exchange.
The multimillion-dollar drop in the market value of Rabiu’s 99.8-percent stake can be attributed to the recent decline in the share price of the consolidated food business.
As a result of profit-taking actions and portfolio-rotation activities by investors, BUA Foods shares have fallen from a price of N66 ($0.158) on Jan. 14 to N61.8 ($0.1478) at the time of drafting this report.
In the last 28 days, the downward price movement has resulted in a total loss of 6.4 percent for shareholders.
Rabiu’s ownership interest in the food business has dropped from N1.2 trillion ($2.8 billion) on Jan. 14 to N1.1 trillion ($2.6 billion), resulting in a total loss of N75.4 billion ($180.6 million) for the billionaire businessman in 28 days.
Despite the recent loss in the market value of his stake, Rabiu’s net worth has increased from $5.3 billion at the start of the year to more than $7.8 billion as a result of the successful listing of BUA Foods shares on the Nigerian Exchange.
Since Jan. 5, when the company’s 18 billion ordinary shares were approved for trading on the local exchange, its share price has risen from N40 ($0.0957) to N61.8 ($0.1478), and its market capitalization has increased from N720 million ($1.74 billion) to N1.11 trillion ($2.7 billion).
At the end of 2021, figures contained in BUA Foods’ unaudited financial statement revealed that its net profit increased from N33 billion ($78.9 million) in 2020 to N46.2 billion ($110.5 million) in 2021, while its revenue surged from N177.7 billion ($425.1 million) to N230.9 billion ($552.3 million).
