By Siyanda Mthethwa
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South African pharmacy chain Clicks Group reported a 13.2% rise in half-year profit on Wednesday, helped by a growing market share in core health and beauty categories.
Basic headline earnings per share, a key metric in South Africa, rose to 603.9 cents in the six months to February 28 from 533.6 cents in the same period a year earlier.
The biggest drugstore in South Africa also forecast that its diluted HEPS for the financial year ending August 31 will increase by between 11% and 16%, said Group CEO Bertina Engelbrecht.
The company said it saw strong growth in retail health and pharmacy, higher sales of private label products, and increased promotional sales.
Group turnover increased by 6.2% to 23.2 billion rand ($1.22 billion). Retail turnover, which includes Clicks, M-Kem, The Body Shop and Sorbet corporate stores, increased by 6.4%. Distribution turnover increased by 7.6%.
“Long-term organic growth opportunities in Clicks and the increasing scale of the business should ensure that the group continues to deliver on its medium-term financial targets,” Clicks said in a statement.
The company said there was an increased demand for GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro, which are used for weight loss, and that it has been easier to receive these drugs from suppliers.
Clicks also said the trading environment could remain constrained in the second half of the 2025 financial year as consumer spending is expected to be affected by a proposed value-added tax increase effective from May 1.
The company, which has 950 stores, declared an interim dividend of 238.0 cents per share.
(Reporting by Siyanda Mthethwa; Editing by Tannur Anders, David Goodman, Sharon Singleton and Jan Harvey)
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