South African private university group Stadio outlines plans for Multiversity as student numbers grow
JSE-listed private university group, Stadio on Monday reported a big jump in revenue for the six months ended June 2019, while it also outlined its plans to become a Multiversity.
Stadio currently owns six private Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) with its purpose being to widen access to quality and relevant higher education programmes in Southern Africa. Over the six month period, it increased student numbers by 10%, to 28,280.
As a Multiversity, it aims to provide programmes, both undergraduate (including bachelors degrees, higher certificates and diplomas) and post graduate (including honours, masters, and doctorate degrees), that offers graduates a real chance of creating employment opportunities (entrepreneurship) or finding employment.
Financial results:
- Student numbers increased from 25,789 to 28,280 (+10%)
- Revenue increased from R297 million to R409 million (+38%)
- Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased from R60 million to R105 million (+75%)
- Headline Earnings per share increased from 3.5 cents per share to 5.1 cents (+46%)
- Core Headline Earnings per share increased from 4.0 cents per share to 5.7 cents (+43%)
- The Stadio Group has 82 accredited qualifications and 57 pipeline programmes that are in the process of development/accreditation
The group said it will look to consolidate the programmes offered by its various HEIs under a single brand, Stadio Multiversity, adding that it has already made good progress on this front, and subject to the required regulatory approvals, it is envisaged that all brands will form part of Stadio Multiversity during 2020.
Stadio said that it increased first semester student enrolments by 7% to 28,280 students (June 2018: 26,334). Over the same period, on-campus students grew by 13% to 6,081 students (June 2018: 5,402) and off-campus students grew by 6% to 22,199 students (June 2018: 20,932).
The overall growth in student numbers were impacted by the enrolment of students at Milpark for the period, it said. Stadio Holdings, which spun out of private-school entity Curro, acquired Milpark Education for R320 million in 2017.
“Excluding the impact of Milpark’s student numbers, on a like-for-like basis, the group grew student numbers by 16% for the six months ended 30 June 2019.
“A part of Milpark’s business is to service the higher education training needs of various corporate entities. This portion of the business is cyclical and directly impacted by various economic factors which remain outside of Milpark’s control.”
Milpark’s student numbers for the six months ended June 2019 contracted by 7% to 9 166 students. Notwithstanding the decline, Milpark reported a 14% increase in revenue over the period (on a like-for-like basis).
The increase is largely due to the better mix of enrolled students, with the average revenue per Milpark student increasing from R10,459/student to R12,923/student over the six month period, Stadio said.
Looking ahead, Stadio warned shareholders that given the timing of expenses as well as the expenses to be incurred with respect to the migration to one Stadio Multiversity, costs in the second half of the current financial reporting period may be higher.
It said that it will focus on the development of multi-faculty large-scale campuses, over time.
“These campuses will offer multiple faculties in a single location. Stadio has identified that potential exists to construct these large scale-campuses in the Western Cape, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, and is pursuing these opportunities,” it said.
“To this end, the group is in the process of concluding the purchase of a fitting site in Centurion (Gauteng), and has already entered into an agreement, to acquire vacant land located in Durbanville (Western Cape), both of which are subject to various closing conditions.
“Given the respective sites’ land readiness to start construction, we expect the first large-scale campus to open in Centurion in 2021, with the Durbanville campus opening in 2022,” Stadio said.
Read: South African private university group is closer to creating a ‘Multiversity’ for 100,000 students
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