Business

Owner of iconic South African brand beats shortages

Jonathan Hoyle

 ·30 Oct 2026

The Oceana Group is anticipating strong earnings growth, aided by a solid contribution from Lucky Star.

The group, which is involved in the fishing and food processing industry, published a trading update this week, pointing to positive results.

The group said it expects a significant increase in both its earnings per share and Headline Earnings Per Share (HEPS).

For earnings per share, Oceana is anticipating an increase between 45% and 55% from the prior year to 815-870 cents.

HEPS is expected to rise by 46% to 56% and will be between 825 cents and 880 cents, compared to 564.8 cents in the previous year.

The company attributed the increase in earnings per share to higher operating profit and strong performance across several areas.

“The expected increase in earnings is primarily attributable to higher operating profit and lower interest costs,” the company said.

“Operating profit improved on stronger performances from the fishmeal and fish oil (USA), and wild-caught seafood segments, driven by higher volumes and improved pricing, and a solid contribution from Lucky Star Foods despite limited inventory.”

Oceana previously said that Lucky Star had seen mixed results in the last financial year, largely due to supply shortages.

“Lucky Star Foods delivered mixed results for the period, with a strong first half followed by a subdued second half through to the end of August,” Oceana Group said in September 2026.

“Shortages of frozen fish raw material constrained canned pilchard availability and slowed sales momentum.”

These shortages also impacted the brands’ canning operations, which struggled to absorb the fixed costs due to lower production.

“Raw material shortages also reduced local canning production volumes by 60%, placing upward pressure on per-unit production costs due to fixed production costs not being fully absorbed,” Oceana Group said.

“Despite this pressure, operating margins benefited from higher net realised sales values, lower freight and inventory holding costs, a better sales mix and increased volumes of locally caught pilchards.”

The lack of raw materials ultimately led to Lucky Star having lower inventory volumes than in the previous year.

“Inventory volumes closed significantly lower than the prior period, primarily as a result of the constrained fish supply environment.”

Lucky Star is a perennial winner at major South African consumer awards, often winning top spots in rankings such as AskAfrika Icon Brands Awards and the Sunday Times Top Brand Awards.

Oceana Group plans to publish its financial results for the last financial year on Thursday, 26 November 2026.

Oceana Group expected financial results