Safaricom Falls Back Below Pre-Results Share Price, Co-op Surges 10.5% in Week 20

Week 20 of 2026, Ended Friday May 15

It took exactly seven trading days for the market to forget Safaricom's record KSh 95.61Bn profit.

The telco fell 6.68% to KSh 30.05 this week, wiping out nearly all of last Thursday's post-earnings surge and closing below where it traded before the results were released. KSh 67Bn in market value gone, almost dollar for dollar matching the KSh 71Bn it added the previous week.

The NSE All Share Index dropped 1.93% to 205.60, its steepest weekly decline since early April, pulled lower by Safaricom's weight. But strip out the telco and the picture inverts with the Banking Index rising 2.08% to 236.85, led by Co-operative Bank, which surged 10.54% to KSh 32.50. The market has now posted back-to-back weeks of mirror-image splits: last week Safaricom up while banks fell, this week the reverse.

Globally, the oil shock tightened its grip. Murban crude rose back to $94.84 from $89.13, reversing last week's brief reprieve. US inflation accelerated to 3.8% in April, and the CBK bulletin carried a line that would have been unthinkable three months ago: financial markets are now repricing for Federal Reserve rate hikes in 2026.

The week's most consequential corporate development had nothing to do with earnings. Regulators in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda cleared Asahi Group Holdings to proceed with its acquisition of Diageo Kenya, granting exemptions from mandatory takeover requirements. The transaction gives the Japanese brewer an indirect 65% stake in East African Breweries, reshaping the ownership structure of one of the NSE's most liquid counters. EABL traded KSh 486M on the week, closing at KSh 243.25.

Biggest Movers

Flame Tree bounced 13.83% after dropping 12.15% the previous week. Co-operative Bank surged 10.54%, Standard Group gained 5.76%, and Sasini rose 4.04%. On the other side, BAT Kenya fell 9.84% to KSh 513.00 on post book closure trade, TPS Serena dropped 8.21%, and Kenya Power lost 4.95%.

Equity turnover fell 29.14% to KSh 3.10Bn. Banking held 49.41% of activity, with Equity at KSh 823M. Safaricom's share of turnover halved to 16.59% as volume dropped from 38.2M shares to 16.3M, suggesting the post-earnings trading frenzy has subsided.

Foreign investors sold KSh 371.81M net, with offshore participation at 45.09% of total turnover for the second consecutive week above 40%.

The shilling held at KSh 129.33. CBK reserves rose for a second straight week to USD 13,507M (5.7 months of import cover). April remittances fell 11.7% to USD 397.8M, though cumulative 12-month inflows crossed USD 5.05Bn.

The 91-day T-bill climbed to 8.32%, now nearly 100 basis points above the March lows, reflecting tightening conditions as inflation at 5.6% keeps the CBK pinned. Bond turnover surged 84.18% to KSh 41.04Bn. The Bond Index fell 0.95% to 1,163.00.

Co-operative Bank, Diamond Trust Bank, Flame Tree Group, and Satrix MSCI World Feeder released financial statements. Kenya Power announced closure of registers for preference share dividends due June 30.

Key Rates Snapshot: Week Ended May 15, 2026