As August drew to a close, the tape lit up with everything from chunky director buys to institutional power plays — and more than a few eyebrow-raising exits.
Datatec’s CEO and largest shareholder, Jens Montanana, added 25,000 shares to his personal holding at an average R59.38 a share, a R1.48m outlay that underscores his confidence in the IT services group’s trajectory.
Sabvest Capital was another big insider vote of confidence. CFO Kyle De Matteis put down more than R7.3m across two transactions, lifting his direct holding with buys at about R95-R100 a share. Sabvest’s share price has increased by 18.48% year to date.
Elsewhere on the buy side, nonexecutives at JSE-listed private higher education group Stadio Holdings were also upping their stakes. Thomas Brown bought 30,000 shares for just under R298,000, while Vincent Maphai added 11,000 for R108,000 — both at prices just shy of R10. Stadio has achieved a core headline earnings increase of 28% to R176m for the six months to June 2025.
At Acsion, an associate of CEO Kiriakos Anastasiadis topped up with three trades, worth R1.2m, through subsidiary Southern Palace Investments.
The Mashoweng Trust, linked to newly appointed KAP CEO Frans Olivier, snapped up 529,000 shares for just under R1m. KAP’s latest interim results show a difficult first half with headline earnings down 47%. According to outgoing CEO Gary Chaplin, it has ramped up four big projects and refinanced all debt. “So we’ve got a new CEO in place, which I think is going to bring fresh energy to deliver on the strategy. Tough trading environment, but pleased with some big-ticket items that we’ve delivered.”
Finbond Mutual Bank had its own insider action, with nonexecutive director Sean Riskowitz and associate Protea Asset Management picking up a combined 109,000 shares for a modest R118,000. And Invicta CFO Nazlee Rajmohamed bought 1,664 shares at R34.98 a share.
Vunani Fund Managers CEO Ethan Dube bought north of R100,000 worth of shares over a handful of purchases. Margaret Ann Herbst, wife of Huge Group CEO James Herbst, bought 500,000 shares worth R675,000 through Eagle Creek Investments.
Coronation Fund Managers and Sanlam were active in Fairvest A shares, with Coronation now sitting north of 50% and Sanlam decreasing its ownership to 8.82%.
Grindrod CEO Xolani Mbambo banked R4.4m from a 298,000 share sale, likely linked to his move to Kumba Iron Ore as CFO
Coronation also nudged higher in Mondi to 9.01% and crossed 20% in Bytes Technology Group, where nonexecutive director Shruthi Chindalur also made a personal buy of 6,213 shares. Hammerson saw Coronation lift its holding past 8%, while Norges Bank disclosed a 5% stake in Truworths and a subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada, RBC Global Asset Management, ticked up to just more than 5% in Clicks.
Not all trades were in the green, though. Renergen’s two top executives, Stefano Marani and Nicholas Mitchell, each sold 250,000 shares for a combined R7.8m, though both retain meaningful stakes north of 5%. Grindrod CEO Xolani Mbambo banked R4.4m from a 298,000 share sale, likely linked to his move to Kumba Iron Ore as CFO.
At property group Collins, nonexecutive director and former CEO Friedrich Esterhuyse offloaded 37,000 shares for just more than R409,000. At Nepi Rockcastle, Landmark Consulting Eood, an associate of director Rüdiger Dany, sold 90,000 shares on-market for a total of R13.16m. Sasol saw a smaller disposal, with Rightwell Laxa, a director of Sasol South Africa (a major subsidiary), selling 4,303 ordinary shares for R501,385.
BlackRock was busy offshore, oscillating around the 3% threshold in AB InBev across multiple filings, while trimming slightly in Primary Health Properties.
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