Super Group, which concluded a number of deals in the UK, Germany and Australia over the reporting period, said revenue jumped 40% to R12.2bn from R8.74bn in the first half of 2014-15. Profit over the period increased 22% to R601.2m.
Super Group has actively pursued foreign income streams in the past year, under the leadership of CEO Peter Mountford, as operating margins in the logistics industry at home remain pressured by slow economic growth. Last year, the company spent just more than R4bn acquiring Australian vehicle finance provider NCL and a controlling stake (75%) of German logistics firm IN tIME.
NCL and IN tIME made a minimal contribution to interim earnings as the acquisitions only become effective in November 2015. The deal that made the most meaningful contribution to the group's earnings was the inclusion of Allen Ford for the full reporting period compared to only one month in the six months to December 2014.
Super Group acquired a 100% stake in the UK's biggest motor dealer of Ford cars for R606m in October 2014.
The rand weakened by 16.9% against the British pound in the six months to December, the company said yesterday.
The rand lost 6.2% against the euro and was down 0.4% against the Australian dollar over the same period.
Super Group's local operations delivered a mixed first-half performance. Operating profit from its African supply chain business dropped 9.6%, weighed down by a disappointing showing from SG Coal. The company blamed SG Coal's poor performance on "a substantial drop in deliveries to Eskom, poor commodity prices and overall volatile mining conditions, aggravated by labour disputes".
The company's fleet operations in SA and on the rest of the continent boosted operating profit by 62.6%, helped by a lucrative Transnet contract as well as securing a number of new contracts. Its dealership business in SA outperformed the local vehicle market.
Macquarie analyst Boitumelo Mofikoe said the company's performance, particularly in SA, was slightly better than what he had pencilled in. "Growth in SA's market is hard to come by, which is a message that has been reiterated by various industrials businesses." Mofikoe remained bullish about Super Group's prospects in the year ahead, "with the latest acquisitions of IN tIME and NLC expected to unlock further synergies for the business".
Source: Business Day
