The Masi Takes a Breather, Attention Shifts to March Releases

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Welcome to the first 2024 edition of "Eye on the Markets", your weekly newsletter where we provide you with a concise summary of key developments in the financial markets over the past week.

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The Masi Takes a Breather, Attention Shifts to March Releases

The curtain fell this week on the quarterly earnings season at the Casablanca Stock Exchange, showcasing an overall improvement in the total revenues of listed companies.

Overall, the year 2023 was prosperous for listed companies, achieving a cumulative turnover of MAD 294 billion, the highest since the COVID-19 crisis. Some companies exceeded expectations, with the overall dynamism driven by record achievements in the banking sector. The question remains whether the rise in revenues will also be reflected in other aspects of companies' accounts and in their dividends. The entire month of March will provide insights into this.

Overall, the earnings reports are in line with expectations.

Now that the quarterly earnings season has concluded, attention turns to margins, profits, and shareholder remuneration.

After three weeks of strong gains, the stock market took a breather with a 0.55% decline for the MASI, which still maintains levels above 13,000 points.

Outperforming January

In February, the MASI posted a performance higher than that of January, driven by a generally positive sentiment. It closes the month with a 4.54% gain, with a total volume of MAD 4.42 billion.

Unsurprisingly, the three largest market capitalizations dominate trading: MAD 859 million for Attijariwafa Bank, MAD 469 million for BCP, and MAD 447 million for Maroc Telecom.

The market's strength is also reflected at the sectoral level, with only three sectors recording negative performances: Chemistry (-1.48%), L&SI (-4.95%), and SF&AF (-0.38%). On an individual basis, CMT, experiencing varied fortunes this month, leads the gains with 21%, followed by Akdital, Addoha, and RDS. At the bottom of the table, Rebab Company (-10.26%), and the two payment operators S2M (-9.88%) and M2M Group (-9.66%).

Looking ahead, operators are expected to enter a "digestion" phase before the start of the annual reporting season and the return of the central bank in about twenty days.

Market?Overview

• Stock Market: The Casablanca Stock Exchange closed the week from February 26 to March 1 on a negative note, with its main index, the MASI, declining by 0.55% to 13,010 points.
• Bond Market: The first auction session of March was marked by a raising of MAD 3.5 billion against significant investor demand exceeding MAD 11 billion. Faced with this uptake, yields on the long-term segment of the primary curve recorded a downward trend compared to the previous week, as explained by Attijari Global Research.
• Exchange Market: The Dollar appreciated against the Dirham this week, reaching 10.07 compared to 10.04 the previous week, reflecting a variation of +0.34%. This movement is attributed to a double positive effect, according to AGR.

Key Highlights

• In a joint effort to promote business financing through capital opening, the Casablanca Stock Exchange and the Order of Chartered Accountants (OEC) signed a partnership agreement on Thursday, February 29, at the Casablanca Stock Exchange. Details.
• As part of the Information Day on the forecast programs for the BTP markets for the year 2024, Nizar Baraka, Minister of Equipment and Water, reviewed the achievements of 2023 and the outlook for 2024. Details.

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Macroeconomic Indicators

• Industry: 1.3% decline in producer prices in January.
• Tax revenues exceed MAD 24 billion in January.
• Budget deficit at MAD 1.7 billion in January.

Company Spotlight

• Anouar Ben Ammar, director of Ennakl Automobiles, shares his vision of the Tunisian automotive market in an interview. He discusses the distributor's achievements and outlines its prospects for the future. Video.
• The AMMC has approved the capital increase of the Managem Group for MAD 3 billion. The shares will be issued at a price lower than the last stock market price. Details.

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Trading Portfolio

No operations this week.

Historical Operations Table ?

Investor Portfolio ?

Launched on December 15, 2023, the Boursenews Investor Portfolio achieves a performance of 14.86% as of February 1, 2024. This virtual portfolio aims to capture the stock market's performance over several months. With an initial capital of MAD 1,000,000, it consists of carefully selected stocks, reflecting a judicious balance between profit growth potential and a robust growth strategy.

Technical Review

From a graphical perspective, the upward trend continues with the MASI surpassing the resistance zone of 13,000 points. The medium-term trend remains bullish, with targets set at 13,200 and 13,900 points, without ruling out profit-taking towards 12,750 points in the short term.

Analyst Recommendations

Attijari Global Research (AGR) has maintained its buy recommendation for Maroc Telecom shares with a target price of 116 dirhams, offering a stock appreciation potential of 12%.Details.

Upcoming Events

• Next meeting of the Bank Al-Maghrib Council - March 19, 2024

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That's all for this week's recap. Stay tuned for more analyses and information on the financial markets. If you have any questions or would like to discuss specific topics in more detail, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Thank you for subscribing to Eye on the Markets, and have a profitable week!

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