Johannesburg - The shareholders of Kagiso Media, an empowerment broadcasting firm that is quietly building a solid base of assets, will be rewarded with a R55 million interim dividend in March because of a shortage of acquisition opportunities.
Shareholders, which include Tiso Capital Partners and Allan Gray, will get a 42c a share interim dividend for the six months to December.
Roger Jardine, Kagiso's chief executive, said that in the absence of acquisition opportunities the group shareholders should expect "a relatively high percentage of profits to be distributed to them".
Shares in the group reacted well and shot up 4 percent to close at R12.51 yesterday on the JSE Securities Exchange, while the media sector was down 1.17 percent.
The shares have gained 8.3 percent so far this year, giving the company a market capitalisation of R1.7 billion.
Kagiso Media, which owns several cash-generative radio assets - Durban-based East Coast Radio and Bloemfontein-based OFM - yesterday posted interim results that are not comparable on a line-by-line basis because of the acquisition of a further 17.5 percent stake of Johannesburg-based Jacaranda and a 15.8 percent in radio advertising sales firm Radmark.
The group's headline earnings rose 14 percent to 47.3c a share and cash on hand rose by R19.3 million to R107 million. Group revenue climbed 79.7 percent to R266 million and net profit rose 16.5 percent to R61.8 million. Specialist publisher LexisNexis Butterworths delivered a 23 percent increase in revenue.
Profit from operations increased 97.4 percent to R109 million.
Kagiso Exhibitions' sales rose 59 percent to R45 million, and the group anticipates that this division will benefit from managing South Africa's participation in the 2005 World Expo in Japan and from the annual Easter Rand Show.
Jacaranda, which has cancelled an onerous consulting agreement, increased its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation margin to 50.8 percent from 49.7 percent.
It expected OFM radio to increase its revenues as a result of being granted rights to install a transmitter in Sasolburg.