SA Company News:
The Johannesburg Stock Exchange All-Share Index closed 0.21% higher at the 93 724 level, continuing its upward momentum at record levels for a second consecutive day.
Pepkor Holdings Ltd reported results for the six months ending 31 March 2025. Pepkor delivered strong results in a tough economy. Revenue grew by 12.8% to R48.8 billion, and operating profit rose 13.3% to R5.8 billion. Headline earnings per share (HEPS) increased by 12.4% to 84.3 cents, with normalised HEPS (adjusted for tax effects) up 18.9%. The company also maintained solid cash flow and returns on assets. Pepkor’s fintech arm showed strong growth, with revenue up 34.5%. Financial services revenue jumped 67.3%, thanks new products like the FoneYam smartphone rental. Pepkor said that they are expanding into semi-formal clothing with their Choice Clothing acquisition and growing its furniture division through the purchase of Shoprite’s furniture business.
Datatec Limited reported a strong set of financial results for the year ended 28 February 2025. Despite an 8.8% decline in revenue, restated to US$3.64 billion due to an accounting policy change, the Group delivered meaningful growth in profitability, with gross profit increasing by 5.6% to US$910.3 million and adjusted EBITDA rising 28.2% to US$246.2 million. Earnings per share rose sharply by 78.4% to 30.5 US cents, while headline earnings per share climbed by nearly 80% to 25.5 US cents. The Board declared a final cash dividend of 200 ZAR cents per share, a 53.8% increase from the previous year, with an option for shareholders to elect a scrip distribution instead of a cash payment. The final dividend will be paid on 21 July 2025.
Reinet Investments S.C.A. reported robust financial performance for the year ended 31 March 2025, with its net asset value (NAV) rising to €6.9 billion. This was an increase of €731 million or 11.8% from the prior year’s figure of €6.18 billion. Since its establishment in 2009, Reinet has delivered a compound annual NAV growth rate of 9.0% in euro terms, including dividends paid. On a per-share basis, NAV climbed from €34.02 to €38.04 over the past year. A significant driver of this performance was the completion of Reinet’s disposal of its remaining 48.3 million shares in British American Tobacco (BAT), generating gross proceeds of €1.63 billion. In addition to these capital gains, Reinet also received €98 million in dividends from BAT during the year. Another major contributor was the Pension Insurance Corporation Group Limited (PICG), from which Reinet collected €235 million in ordinary and special dividends. In line with its policy of steady capital returns, Reinet paid a dividend of €0.35 per share during the year. The Board has now proposed a higher final dividend of €0.37 per share, a 5.7% increase, to be paid following shareholder approval at the upcoming Annual General Meeting.
SA Economy:
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) said that they are intensifying efforts to revise the country’s inflation targeting framework for the first time in nearly a quarter-century. Deputy Governor Fundi Tshazibana recently confirmed that technical teams have completed their analysis and are preparing formal recommendations to present to the Minister of Finance. The current inflation target band of 3% to 6%, in place since the adoption of inflation targeting in 2000, is now considered outdated and misaligned with global peers. Economists have long argued that the wide range enables inflation expectations to drift toward the upper bound, which in turn sustains higher interest rates. Citadel’s chief economist, Maarten Ackerman, suggested that narrowing the range to something like 3% – 4% could help lower inflation expectations and, consequently, the long-term cost of borrowing.
Global Economy:
Profits at China’s industrial firms rose 1.4% y-o-y to CNY 2,117.02 billion in the first four months of 2025, picking up from 0.8% growth in the January – March period. The upturn reflects China’s continued efforts to bolster the sluggish economy and address mounting trade risks.
Global Company:
The FTSE 100 was closed for a public holiday.
The Hang Seng Index is trading 0.11% lower at 23 258.
Chinese food-delivery Meituan reported a net profit of 10.06 billion yuan (about $1.4 billion), higher than the 5.37 billion yuan reported a year earlier and the 7.93 billion yuan expected of analysts polled by FactSet. Revenue grew 18% to 86.56 billion yuan, topping analysts’ estimate of 85.4 billion yuan. driven mainly by growth in its local commerce business. Meituan’s new business segment grew revenue by 19% and reduced its losses. Meituan’s share price is down about 15% for the year so far.
In China, the Shanghai Composite is down 0.19% at 3 339.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were closed in observance of Memorial Day, while quarterly results from Nvidia are expected to take center stage tomorrow after the market closes.
Commodities:
Gold is trading lower by 0.71% at $3 325/oz, while Platinum is lower by 1.43% to $1 082/oz.
Brent crude was 1.07% lower at $64.45 a barrel.
Currency:
The rand traded at R17.88 against the US Dollar, R24.23 against British Pound and R20.34 against the Euro.
The Euro is slightly weaker against the US Dollar to trade at $1.1375.
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| Market Indicators | |||||||
| Commodities $ | Cross Currencies ($) | Major Indices | |||||
| Gold | 3325.00 | -0.71% | USD/ZAR | 17.88 | Top40 | 86121.53 | 0.22% |
| Platinum | 1082.00 | -1.43% | GBP/ZAR | 24.23 | Dow 30 | 41603.07 | 0.00% |
| Brent | 64.45 | -1.07% | EUR/ZAR | 20.34 | S&P 500 | 5802.82 | 0.00% |
| Copper | 4.77 | -1.89% | EUR/USD | 1.1375 | FTSE | 8717.97 | 0.00% |
| Palladium | 983.30 | -2.01% | USD/JPY | 143.27 | DAX | 24027.65 | 1.66% |
| Iron Ore | 95.95 | -1.20% | BITCOIN | 108869.57 | Shanghai | 3339.51 | -0.19% |
| Source: FACTSET | |||||||