Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Kenya’s price-weighted All-Share Index advanced 0.23, or 0.4 percent, to 55.93 points at 10 a.m. in Nairobi, the third day of gains.

The shares of 12 companies advanced, seven declined and 36 were unchanged. The following were among the most active stocks on the Nairobi Stock Exchange today.

Equity Bank Ltd. (EQBNK KN), Kenya’s biggest lender by customers, advanced on expectations of better full-year earnings, an analyst said. The shares climbed 1.1 percent to 14.4 shillings.

Last month, the lender said it boosted net interest income, or revenue from borrowers after deducting interest paid to depositors, to 6.7 billion shillings ($89.3 million) in the nine months through September, from 4.8 billion shillings a year earlier.

“The nine months earnings confirmed that they have reached their bottom and investors are now expecting a 15 percent to 20 percent growth for the full-year,” Aly Khan Satchu, a Nairobi- based independent stock market analyst, said in a phone interview.

Kenya Airways Ltd., sub-Saharan Africa’s third-biggest airline, advanced 1 percent to 24.75 shillings, it highest price since Aug 18.

“It has been improving for several weeks,” Satchu said. “A lot of people think there will be a sharp acceleration in earnings.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Eric Ombok in Nairobi at eombok@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: November 6, 2009 02:42 EST