Listed cement producer Pretoria Portland Cement Company (PPC) has reported a 4% increase in its fully diluted headline earnings per share (Heps) for the six months to the end of March 2005, from 585 cents in the year-earlier period. The company declared an interim dividend of 260 cents per share.
The share price of global pulp and paper producer Sappi fell by 4,3% or R2,89 in early trade on Friday after the company said in its second-quarter results that it does not expect its 2005 full-year earnings to match those of 2004. At 9.50am, Sappi’s shares were quoted on the JSE Securities Exchange at R64,50.
The share price of industrial and construction company Concor jumped 12,5% or R2,50 in early trade on Thursday after it emerged late on Tuesday that two rival construction groups — Murray & Roberts and Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon are interested in taking over Concor.
Listed retailer and distributor Massmart has added yet more popular retail chains to its already wide array of brands, announcing the acquisition on Tuesday of a controlling stake in sports specialist Moresport for R403,8-million in cash. Moresport owns Sportsmans Warehouse, Sport Shoe World and Outdoor Warehouse.
The share price of gaming and hospitality group Peermont Global jumped 4,26% or 30 cents in early trade on Friday after the group revealed it had made it to the next stage in the process of selecting a successful candidate to introduce and operate the first casinos in Singapore.
The financial performance of the Clicks chain of health and beauty stores, owned by New Clicks Holdings, has been dented for the six months to the end of February by continued "shrinkage" — the retail industry’s term for theft — and losses in its pharmacy operations.
The wide-ranging black economic empowerment (BEE) transactions unveiled on Tuesday by Old Mutual involving the sale of an overall 12,75% stake in its South African operations to BEE participants will be the "full arrangements" that will be made by the group in terms of BEE ownership.
Listed supermarket group Pick ‘n Pay is expected to report a 21% increase in its headline earnings per share for the year to the end of February this year, to 135 cents from 111,6 cents the previous year, when it announces its final results on Tuesday morning, according to a consensus of seven investment analysts.
Campaigners wanting to see lower fuel prices in South Africa should call on the public to use fuel more efficiently, rather than inviting the public to join a "national campaign to reduce the petrol price" by boycotting certain petrol products, according to the South Africa Petroleum Industry Association.
The creditworthiness of the South African banking system as a whole remains stable despite the socio-economic pressures it faces, global rating agency Standard & Poors (S&P) has concluded in its latest report on the country. At the end of 2004, South Africa had 21 registered banks, two mutual banks and 15 local branches of foreign banks.