Airtel share price hits record high as trading activity surges

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Airtel Uganda shares climbed to a fresh peak last week, leading gainers on the Uganda Securities Exchange as overall market activity picked up.

Airtel rose 3.03% to an all-time high of sh136 per share. The telecom stock’s gains came as total market turnover jumped 65.48% to sh1.34b, up from sh809.46m traded the previous week.

Trading was concentrated in a handful of stocks, with Umeme leading the pack after accounting for sh582.07 million from 9.2 million shares. Stanbic Holdings followed with sh440.29m, while Bank of Baroda posted sh186.62m in traded value.

MTN Uganda saw trades worth sh83.44m, while Airtel itself recorded a relatively modest sh37.39m despite its price rally. Smaller counters, including NIC Holdings, Quality Chemicals Industries Limited (QCL), and New Vision Printing and Publishing Company, posted limited activity.

QCIL gained 2.39% to sh122.08. MTN Uganda dropped 6.13% to sh439.20. New Vision shed 3.36% to sh144, NIC fell 1.60% to a record low of sh4.92, and Stanbic Holdings eased 1.28% to sh77. Umeme and Bank of Baroda closed the week unchanged.

Across the region, Kenya Airways surged 27.37%, while Centum Investment Company gained 7.22%. Equity Group Holdings climbed 4.84%, with Jubilee Holdings and KCB Group also posting modest gains. On the losing side, Nation Media Group edged down 0.28%, while East African Breweries Limited slipped 0.12%.