Latest news with #R1.2bn
IOL News
2 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Spar Group explores sale of Spar Switzerland and Appleby Westward Group
The entrance to a Spar grocery shop. The group has predicted flat to slightly lower earnings growth of its continuing operations for the 26 weeks to March 28, 2025 Image: Africa News Agency (ANA) The Spar Group said Thursday it is exploring the sale of Spar Switzerland and Appleby Westward Group (AWG), the regional distribution business in the southwest of England. The group announced in a trading statement for the 26 weeks ended March 28, 2025, in which flat to lower interim earnings growth was forecasted, that the decision to divest from the businesses had followed a strategic review of its European operations. Consequently, Spar Switzerland and AWG would be classified as discontinued operations in the financial statements. Regarding AWG, Spar's board said they were in talks with a UK-based business regarding AWG, which was well positioned to develop and grow AWG in South West England. In Switzerland, "established parties with business interests in the region and experience in European food retail and distribution," were being engaged with, the board said. 'The group approach has been to engage parties whose interests align with the growth ambitions of the local management teams and retailer partners, and will ensure continuity for employees, suppliers and customers,' Spar's directors said. Interim diluted headline earnings per share (Heps) for Spar Southern Africa and Spar Ireland, excluding the results of Spar Switzerland and AWG, were expected to decline between 0% and 10%, to between 409.4 cents to 454.9 cents, compared with 454.9 cents previously. Diluted Heps for group total operations were expected to decline by between 34% to 24%, to between 275.9 cents to 317.8 cents a share. The board said the Southern Africa groceries and liquor segment delivered modest top-line growth, while operating profit maintained solid momentum. The KwaZulu-Natal distribution centre continued a positive trajectory, with improved profitability. This, with a focus on cost discipline, translated into modest operating margin expansion on a comparable basis. Ireland delivered a resilient performance in a tough trading environment, supported by improved gross profit and operating margins in local currency terms, as well as reduced interest expenses driven by lower gearing. These were partially offset by adverse foreign currency translation effects. Total impairments of about R4.2 billion were recognised, including R3bn in Switzerland and R1.2bn in AWG. The impairments take into account the fair value of the disposal groups, less costs to sell.
IOL News
3 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Tiger Brands announces special dividend and strong interim results
Tiger Brands shareholders benefited from a share buyback program started in the first half, and as at March 31, 2025, R500 million was used to repurchase 1.8 million shares. The share buybacks would continue as the opportunities arose, the company said. Image: IOL file Tiger Brands' share price gained 5.7% on Wednesday, continuing a year-long rally in the price after the food producer declared a whopping 1 216.00 cents per share special dividend for the six months to March 31, on top of the ordinary dividend. The share price was trading at R340.67 on the JSE on Wednesday around midday, a price that had risen steadily by 77.4% over 12 months. The ordinary interim dividend came to 415 cents a share, up 19% compared with the interim period in 2024. The total amount to be paid out to shareholders via the special dividend is R1.8 billion. Shareholders would also benefit from a share buyback program started in the first half, and as at March 31, 2025, R500 million had been deployed to repurchase 1.8 million shares. The share buybacks continued after the end of the interim period, and by May 9, 2025, 4.5 million shares had been repurchased for a cumulative R1.2bn. 'We paid out the special dividend from two main considerations. The first was cash from our portfolio disposals, and the second was our overall significant improvement in operating cash flows arising also from our better performance,' chief financial officer Thrushen Govender said in an interview. Improved working capital contributed a cash inflow of R1bn in the first half, compared to an outflow of R4bn last year. Consequently, net cash from operations increased to R3.4bn from R0.8bn at the same time last year. Video Player is loading. 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Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading This, combined with proceeds from the disposal of non-core operations, resulted in the net cash position improving by R8.6bn to R5.9bn, which was well up from a net debt of R2.7bn at the same time last year. Govender said the share buybacks would continue if opportunities arose, and further special dividends might also be considered given the business units identified as non-core that might be disposed of, although nothing was cast in stone yet, as the non-core business units "are certainly not fire-sales.' The three companies were the chocolate business within the Snacks Treats and Beverages segment, the King Foods sorghum business, and the Chococam subsidiary in Cameroon Categories. The strong results arose from a focus on driving value for consumers, executing strategy, improved logistics optimisation, value engineering, and factory efficiencies. The result was despite the constrained consumer environment. Overall revenue was ahead of the prior year by 2% at R18.5bn, driven by 2.1% price inflation and relatively flat volume. Govender said the volume growth followed years of volume decline and was cause for celebration. He said they were on track for continued growth in the second half. 'Our revised strategy and operating model, which places the consumer at the centre of everything we do, ensures that we drive affordability consistently across the portfolio,' Tjaart Kruger, the CEO of Tiger Brands, said in a statement. The volume growth was driven by Tiger Brands' Culinary Business Unit, through deliberate volume recovery initiatives, as well as notable recovery in Milling and Baking, and Snacks, Treats and Beverages. The sale of Baby Wellbeing generated a R455m non-operational taxed profit, while the after-tax profit on the disposal of associate Empresas Carozzi. in the first half amounted to R304m. The total proceeds from these transactions was R4.4bn, with the remaining R0.6bn received in April 2025. In May 2025, Tiger Brands entered into an agreement to dispose of Langeberg & Ashton Foods. As part of the sale, the group would invest R150m towards a Community Trust that will benefit the Langeberg community through socio-economic development initiatives, and which will hold a 10% stake in the new company owning Langeberg. Tiger Brands has also made progress on the sale of its Randfontein Maize Milling operations. The maize category was identified as non-core due to the evolution of the local maize market competitiveness and the increasing establishment of regional millers. The disposal of the wheat mill would also facilitate a simpler and expedited transaction as they were located on the same manufacturing site. BUSINESS REPORT Visit:
TimesLIVE
18-05-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Boxer eyes growth in Gauteng and KZN
Boxer Superstores will double down on growing its presence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal to close the gap with competitors who have been on an aggressive rollout in recent years. This week, the value grocery retailer, which was spun out of Pick n Pay and listed on the JSE in November last year, said it would spend R1.2bn in opening new stores and also on its new distribution centre in KwaZulu-Natal. It has 525 stores in total, including liquor stores, after opening 48 in the year to March. The retailer has almost doubled its outlets from 298 stores in 2020. Boxer CEO Marek Masojada said: 'In terms of the study we have performed, the provinces where we have the biggest gap are Gauteng and KZN. I guess you can say the Western Cape, as well, but our priority is on Gauteng and KZN. One of the reasons we created capacity in our supply chain is to support growth in those two regions. However, we continue opening stores in all other provinces as well.' Boxer opened a second distribution centre in Gauteng about 18 months ago, and early next year will open another one in KZN, which will 'give us capacity of over 100 new stores in the region', said Masojada. In total the retailer has six distribution centres, and once the KZN one comes on stream, Boxer will have capacity to add 200 superstores 'before needing our next distribution centre. This means no new distribution centres for at least four to five years. We have created a solid supply chain platform to grow our future store base,' said Masojada. The value grocer is planning another 60 stores (25 superstores and 35 liquor stores) in the 2026 financial year. Masojada said the challenge was finding space. 'We have people on the ground in every province working with different developers and property owners to unlock some of those opportunities. It's a mix between getting into existing shopping centres that might be taking on a second or third anchor, and greenfield developments as well.' Boxer wants to close the gap between its standalone liquor and grocery stores. It has 320 grocery stores and 175 liquor outlets. 'So, there's an opportunity to close the liquor store numbers faster than the super soil. Without mentioning our targets, we are looking to close that gap,' said Masojada. The company employs 32,000 workers after adding 3,000 new jobs through new stores opened in the year to March. The group is likely to continue converting some Pick n Pay stores into the successful Boxer brand. In the period under review, it took ownership of eight supermarkets and six liquor stores. Outside South Africa, Boxer has stores in eSwatini. Masojada said: 'Currently, we don't have the desire to go outside the borders of South Africa; we see enough opportunity internally. We do keep an eye on what's going on in Lesotho, a smaller market but one that talks to our value-conscious consumers.' All Boxer stores are corporate-owned, and it has no immediate plans to introduce a franchise model. The company will expand its private label products, which are a fifth of total turnover. While its rivals get more than 30% of total turnover from private labels, Masojada said 'at 20% at the moment, we do see a steady increase in that percentage, but we are not fixated on a number — we will be guided by the retail trend within our own stores and what customers are looking for'.
TimesLIVE
12-05-2025
- Business
- TimesLIVE
Boxer expands footprint: 48 new stores opened, targeting 60 more by 2026
Boxer Retail will invest R1.2bn in new stores and a distribution centre in KwaZulu-Natal this year. The grocery retailer added 48 new stores in the 52 weeks to March, bringing its total store network across South Africa and Eswatini to 525. This resulted in 3,000 new jobs, taking its total staff complement to close to 32,000. Boxer is targeting another 60 stores (25 superstores and 35 liquor stores) in the 2026 financial year. The company, which was unbundled from Pick n Pay and listed on the JSE in November last year, reported a 13.2% growth to R42.3bn. Trading profit increased 9.9% to R2.3bn, at a trading margin of 5.5%. 'The results are a testament to our powerful discount model underpinned by a deep understanding of our customers' needs,' the company said. 'We drive volume growth by giving customers great value, enabling us to expand our store network and improve our efficiency, all of which helps us deliver even better prices for our customers. 'It's a model that continues to work, and we're excited about the opportunities ahead and future growth. While there will be continued economic pressures, this is where Boxer really thrives, and we are resolutely focused on execution to capture growth opportunities, which remains our primary focus,' said Marek Masojada, Boxer CEO. Boxer operates in the lower market segment and competes with Shoprite, Usave and Spar's SaveMor. Boxer said 'it's lean discount model, efficient supply chain, and focused expansion give it a strong edge in South Africa's evolving retail landscape.' The company has 1.9-million members on its loyalty rewards programme, which was launched in October last year. It has partnered with Capitec to offer rewards members a discount on 5KG Goldi chicken. The partnership comes hot on the heels of similar collaborations between Pick n Pay and FNB, and Checkers and Standard Bank, who are offering discounts to clients.
