Rainbow Chicken shares surge 13% on strong earnings forecast

Rainbow Chicken's share price surged 13% on the JSE Wednesday, becoming one of the biggest movers on the bourse, after it said headline earnings per share are expected to increase by between 94.9% and 114.9% cents for the six months to December 28, 2025.

The share price traded at R6.50 in the afternoon. By contrast, the JSE All Share Index was up by only 0.79% in the afternoon. Rainbow's share price is also 72.9% higher than a year before, indicating investors may have anticipated a stronger financial performance by the group.

South Africa's biggest integrated poultry producer, which relisted on the JSE in June 2024 after being spun out of RCL Foods, said in a trading statement that earnings per share were expected to be between 69.46 cents and 76.57 cents, representing an increase of between 95.2% and 115.2%, when compared to the reported EPS of 35.58 cents for the comparative period.

Headline earnings per share, a key metric for South African investors which excludes once-off items, were expected to be between 69.46 cents and 76.59 cents. The anticipated improvement was mainly driven by Rainbow's "Brilliant Basics" strategy, with its focus on agricultural performance and operational efficiencies.

The group had also experienced strong demand and lower feed costs as a consequence of reduced commodity input costs. An online search showed maize prices in South Africa - maize is a critical poultry feed - fell between 20% and 25% in 2025 due to strong local harvests and global oversupply.

The group's interim results are expected to be published on March 11, 2024.

BUSINESS REPORT