Cape Empowerment Trust (CET) says it has largely achieved its refocusing programme and shareholders can look forward to a single focused group with above average growth prospects.
Announcing the group`s results for the year to end-February, CE Shaun Rai says CET is in talks with various parties to dispose of the Printhouse investment, in line with the change in focus.
Printhouse was the only CET company which did not perform well during the year, he says.
CET was formed as a black empowerment investment trust in 1998. The board decided at a later stage to restructure the group to become a focused operational technology company.
CET lifted gross revenue 40.8% to R132.8 million in the year to February, from R94.3 million the previous year. Operating profit rose 5.9% to R21.3 million (1999: 20.1 million).
Attributable profit increased 26.6% to R18.1 million (R14.3 million), while headline earnings per share fell 25.4% to 13.2c (17.7c).
Rai says the results reflect a full year`s trading for the CET and its subsidiaries, and have been prepared to reflect the change of focus.
"Consequently, any gains from investment trust-type activities have been removed from headline earnings per share so as to provide users with a reasonable basis to assess the sustainable earnings going forward from core operations.
"Nevertheless, we are pleased to note that the earnings per share [22.4c] is some 12% ahead of forecast and 26% ahead of the previous year`s results."
During the year CET disposed of the Federal Guarding business at a surplus, and used the proceeds to reduce debt.
It also bought a 25% stake in Conlog Holdings, which it says was to acquire the largest prepaid installed base available, allowing the Intella business to build its mass-based transactional business from a solid base.
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