TRADE OF THE MONTH: Bowler Metcalf
BowMet looks solid after operational restructuring
From a size perspective rigid plastics packaging group Bowler Metcalf (BowMet), weighing in with a market cap of only R753m, is no match for R12.3bn market-cap industry giant Nampak. But it’s a different story when it comes to investment merits, with BowMet heavily outweighing Nampak as the share to back. The two groups’ chairmen’s reports to shareholders in 2016 are telling. BowMet chairman Brian Frost delivered a message that could only have brought smiles to the group’s shareholders: “The forward order book is very satisfactory and will keep all factories at full stretch ... It has also required an urgent expansion of our Johannesburg manufacturing facilities.” It was a message Nampak shareholders would have liked to receive. Instead, chairman Tito Mboweni lamented over a “range of external factors” that had “impacted the performance of Nampak’s businesses”.
The damage was enough to send Nampak’s headline EPS tumbling 41% in its year to September. “Nampak has issues which w...
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.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.