Afrimat has forecast an increase in headline earnings per share of between 27% and 37,1% for its 2025 financial year to February 28, 2026.
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Afrimat, which supplies construction materials and bulk commodities, saw its share price fall by over 12% on Tuesday, even though it forecast annual headline earnings per share (HEPS) to increase by between 27% and 37,1%.
The JSE-listed mid-tier mining and materials company said in a trading statement on Tuesday that its directors anticipate HEPS to be between 91,8 cents and 99,1 cents, compared to HEPS of 72,3 cents reported for the previous year.
However, the share price traded lower at R31,79 on Tuesday morning on the JSE after the release of the earnings forecast. The price has fallen steadily by 41,4% from R54,28 a year ago, and it has fallen very sharply from R54,28 in July 2024.
The company said earnings per share (EPS) is expected to be between 76,9 cents and 83,2 cents, representing an increase of between 22,1% and 32,1% when compared with EPS of 63 cents reported for the year ended 28 February 2025.
The group stated that key accomplishments during the year include a good performance in the aggregates business and the successful sale of non-core brick and block and readymix plants.
The company also received financial approval from the preferred bidder's financiers to acquire Afrimat's assets identified for divestiture, as mandated by the Competition Commission, but approval from the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources is still pending.
The group noted that losses in its cement business had moderated.
Local iron ore sales volumes for the current year were higher compared to the prior year, while international iron ore sales were satisfactory.
The restart of certain ferrochrome smelters in South Africa hasdled to the commencement of anthracite supplies from the Nkomati Anthracite Mine, but this was not expected to impact the results for the year to 28 February.
The annual results are expected to be released on 20 May 2026.