While it is good to buy a goat, go on a holiday and even buy your 'boys' and 'girls' a few bottles as you dance to the latest club banger, it is also important to save some coins for a rainy day.
Currently, government papers are lucrative, with returns on Treasury bonds and bills hitting a decade high of up to 14.1 per cent.
However, the recent statement by President William Ruto instructing the National Treasury to cut interests to a maximum of 10 per cent could slow the wave.
It is on this basis that the Star sampled trade at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) to guide you on which company shares to buy, sell or maintain.
STOCKS TO BUY
Although NSE, just like other bourses across the globe has had its share of instability arising from the ongoing economic crisis, some counters performed well and continue to give good returns to investors.
For instance, the consumer discretionary sector has had the best returns gaining 22.73 per cent while the industrial sector has been the worst hit, with a negative return of negative 37.72 per cent.
The banking sector emerged strongly from Covid-19 to record impressive profits in all quarters since Q2 2021.
Fitch Rating's latest Kenya banking sector outlook shows Return on Asset (RoA) for top banks in Kenya will rise from 3.5 per cent to five per cent while Return on Equity (RoE) will improve by 80 basis points from 23.8 per cent.
According to banking expert Charles Kimotho, risk-based lending, the re-introduction of mobile transfer charges, the digital revolution and high credit demand by both government and the private sector will fuel higher returns in the sub-sector.
He places a buy on Equity Bank share that currently trades at Sh44.50, saying the counter is likely to gain a maximum of Sh2 by the close of the year.
Equity Bank Group's net earnings for the first nine months of the year rose by 28 per cent to Sh34.4 billion on improved non-funded income.
KCB Group, Co-op Bank and NCBA, are top lenders in the country whose future looks bright.
NCBA began the year with a share price of Sh25.20 and has since gained 31 per cent on that price valuation, ranking it third on the NSE in terms of year-to-date performance.
Others are Standard Chartered Bank Kenya and Absa Kenya which reported some of the highest dividends in the first nine months of the year of 13.1 per cent and 9.2 per cent.
East African Portland Cement began the year with a share price of Sh6.66 and has since gained 19.8 per cent on that price valuation, ranking it fourth on the NSE in terms of year-to-date performance.
With the construction sector regaining form from Covid-19 deflection, EAPC's share at NSE is expected to gain further hence a definite buy.
Safaricom commands 54 per cent of total tradings at the Nairobi bourse. The telco's share which traded at Sh5 at the Initial Public Offer (IPO) has gained over the years to hit a high of Sh43 in August 2021 before a rapid fall.
On Thursday, the share opened at Sh23.90 and is expected to rise to Sh25 by end of the year on Ethiopian expansion.
A stock market analyst Philomena Watima says Safaricom share perfectly suits a buy and hold.
"Safaricom is a wonder stock that a serious investor at NSE must have. If it hits Sh40, buy and reinvest. You will never go wrong with Safaricom,'' he said.
While some counters have performed well this financial year, experts say several have hit their pinnacles.
According to Kimotho, Olympia Capital is one of these stocks.
Although it began the year with a share price of Sh2 and has since gained 32 per cent on that price valuation, ranking it first on the NSE in terms of year-to-date performance, it is expected to drop in the near future.
Limuru Tea began the year with a share price of Sh320 and has since gained 31.3 per cent on that price valuation, ranking it second on the NSE in terms of year-to-date performance.
Although global tea prices have been rising since January hence high returns to investors, a high supply of the product in the market is expected next year, an aspect that is likely to lower prices.
Kimotho advises investors at Limuru Tea and Williamson Tea Kenya to sell and reinvest in financial stocks.
Williamson Tea began the year with a share price of Sh130 and has since gained 15.4 per cent on that price valuation, ranking it fifth on the NSE in terms of year-to-date performance.
Yesterday, WTK opened the market at Sh145 per share. Williamson Tea Kenya Plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the cultivation, manufacture, and sale of tea in Kenya.
WHY THE STOCK MARKET?
Despite the unpredictable nature of the stock market, it is still one of the best investment vehicles.
When you invest in dividend stocks, you stand to profit in more ways than one.
Non-dividend-paying stocks only offer the potential for profit when you buy their shares at a low price, and sell them for a higher one.
Dividend stocks, on the other hand, allow you to share in company profits while also retaining ownership of your investment.
