Momentum’s shares experienced a significant rally, climbing 13%, after the insurance and investment group released a trading update forecasting a substantial profit surge. The company anticipates earnings and headline earnings per share to increase by 50% to 55%, reaching between 240 cents and 248 cents for the six months ending December. Normalized headline earnings are also projected to rise by 43% to 48%.
This strong earnings guidance boosted Momentum’s market capitalization to approximately R43 billion. The company attributed its strong performance to robust operational results across all business units, improved policy persistency in South African life insurance, and disciplined underwriting practices. Favourable weather conditions also contributed to a recovery in Momentum Insure’s earnings.
Guardrisk reported growth in underwriting profits and management fee income, further bolstered by improved financial market conditions. Momentum’s strong cash generation has also strengthened its capital and liquidity position. The company, which recently rebranded as Momentum Group, aims to achieve normalized headline earnings of R7 billion by its 2027 financial year, focusing on digitization, cost reduction, and organic growth. Momentum’s half-year results are scheduled for release on March 20th.