It heads scratching time for us MoneyCentral as we try to decipher what is really going on with the deluge of insider purchases happening at FBN Holdings or FBNH.
Weeks after the FBNH Group Managing Director (GMD) U.K. Eke added N85 million worth of shares to his holdings of the bank stock, another insider Oluseye Kosoko, the Company Secretary has purchased 2 million shares of the Bank at an average price of N5.45 according to a filing, meaning Kosoko shelled out about N10.9 million for the transaction which took place today 9th June.
FBN Holdings has been gradually transforming itself by reducing problem loans and expanding its earnings power.
The bank due to its large balance sheet should ordinarily be in the leagues of the most profitable banks in Nigeria, however it still earned the smallest net income of the 5 tier-one lenders in the First Quarter.
FBN Holdings closed trading at N5.35 per share today. The stock has returned -16 percent in the past year, according to Bloomberg data.
FBNH is however trading quite cheaply, compared to peers at a lowly 0.2 times book value, compared to 1 times book for fellow Tier-One Lender Guaranty Trust Bank or GTB.
Perhaps the banks transformation is gathering momentum, hence the rush by insiders to take position.
We will be here to analyze all angles as the story unfolds.