I suspect I single-handedly swayed the Springboks’ fortunes in the Rugby World Cup by slapping a grand on the All Blacks winning the final. I had done the same for the France and the England knockout games — and have the betting stubs to prove it. It’s good to know I have not lost my reverse Midas touch.
I could have come good by supplementing my bets with a points differential punt. But prudent has never been my middle name. That said, the lost wagers were a small sacrifice for a most satisfactory sporting outcome. What price can you put on four (more) years of swagger? Sun International shareholders can thank me later too …
Speaking of big game, there was an encouraging reference in investment company Astoria’s latest quarterly/nine-month review concerning its investment in specialist retailer Outdoor Investment Holdings (OIH).
OIH owns Safari Outdoor, a major supplier of hunting equipment; hunting and outdoor wholesaler Inyathi Sporting Supplies; online gun dealer Formalito; and Family Pet Centre. Astoria, after the close of the reporting period, received a dividend from OIH of R7.7m. Last year OIH paid a dividend of R6.9m, which suggests that the retail hub has again performed satisfactorily.
Astoria’s latest review doesn’t provide a NAV breakdown but stated its NAV at R14.07 a share (very slightly up on the figure at the end of financial 2022). Might one presume the value of OIH has been written up?
We can certainly assume the value of the group’s investment in listed gaming group RECM & Calibre (RAC) would have declined markedly, with the share price down almost a quarter over a year.
I wonder if there's any temptation for Astoria to gear up to buy more shares in RAC on the open market?
This is in stark contrast to major gaming groups Sun International and, to a lesser extent, Tsogo Sun, which are both up over a year. I wonder if there’s any temptation for Astoria to gear up to buy more shares in RAC — whose Goldrush subsidiary operates mainly across electronic bingo, limited-payout machine and sports betting platforms — on the open market?
RAC’s discount on Goldrush was about 20% at the end of 2022. It must be wider now, especially if the gaming operations — which seemed to suffer during the heavier load-shedding regime — are ticking over a little better.
The Caxton & CTP annual report was published just as I was typing this column. I’m fascinated to see what the group plans to do with its influential stake in packaging group Mpact, but there are no real clues in the glossies.
Directors do warn shareholders to brace for a tougher year across all divisions. I still take considerable comfort that the large packaging segment serves markets across the defensive vices — alcohol, quick service restaurants and cigarettes. The annual report stresses how fortunate Caxton is to have large cash resources “to deploy where we see opportunities either in our existing businesses or through acquisitions”.
I notice that Caxton now has a very small investment (R376,000) in packaging group Nampak, which is in the throes of a well-documented repair and revitalise effort. I’m not sure if that is something the group might want to build on. It seems weird that Caxton would just take such a minuscule stake … unless it was “inherited” with one of the recent acquisitions.
I take considerable comfort that the packaging segment serves markets across the defensive vices — alcohol, quick service restaurants and cigarettes
For years I have wondered why Caxton does not make a play for perennially profitable broadcast group African Media Entertainment, in which it already has a small stake and where there is related-party influence.
Then again, patient shareholders won’t be unhappy to see Caxton simply plodding along without strenuous corporate activity. Cash flows will still be ample and you can rely on management to keep a lid on costs. For the record, Caxton has paid a collective 545c a share in dividends over the past 10 years — which is damn near half the current share price.
A quick parting shot: I see the JSE has decided to terminate the listing of jewellery retailer Luxe Holdings. This was once the vehicle to advance the rapid rollout of Starbucks and Domino’s outlets in South Africa, before things went horribly awry.
I can understand the JSE’s desire to clean up unnecessary clutter on its boards — especially with Luxe not reporting financial results since late 2021. The company did appeal the JSE’s termination decision, and this might suggest there is progress on plans to sell some of the jewellery assets.
If shareholders do find themselves sitting in an unlisted Luxe next week, I hope communication lines remain open about the possible salvaging of some value. It’s bad enough getting a kick in the wallet, but quite another thing not to have proper closure.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.