International investors are betting big on one of South Africa’s major retailers
Clicks continues to see a strong performance, with the stock set to benefit from increased international inflows into domestic equities.
Clicks recently opened its 1,000th store in Bassonia, with the group also having over 780 pharmacies across South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Eswatini, and Lesotho.
Over 50% of South Africans live within a five-kilometre radius of a Clicks Pharmacy, and the group aims to reach 1,200 stores over the medium term.
The group’s strong performance was recently evident in its financial results for the year ended August 31, 2025, which the group stated demonstrated the resilience of its core products in a challenging environment.
The group increased diluted headline earnings per share by 14.1% to 1,362 cents, while its return on equity (ROE) reached 49.2%. Group turnover rose by 5.3% to R47.8 billion.
It reported a 10.7% increase in private label and exclusive brands, which accounted for R9.7 billion of the chain’s turnover.
Loyalty members received over R850 million in cashback, with total rewards paid to customers reaching R7.5 billion over the last 30 years.
The group declared a total dividend for the year of 886 cents per share for the period, which was a 14.2% increase, and a payout ratio of 65%.
In addition to the dividends, the group also distributed over R750 million to shareholders through share buybacks.
| Clicks latest results | Year to 31 August 2025 (R’000) | Year to 31 August 2024 (R’000) | % change |
| Turnover | 47 828 079 | 45 437 640 | 5.3% |
| Gross profit | 11 399 653 | 10 632 419 | 7.2% |
| Total income | 14 860 861 | 13 714 721 | 8.4% |
| Headline earnings | 3 234 282 | 2 844 598 | 13.7% |
| Net financing cost | (242 970) | (265 172) | (8.4%) |
| Headline earnings per share (cents) | 1 361.7 | 1 193.5 | 14.1% |
| Total Dividend per share (Cents) | 886 | 776 | 14.2% |
International buyers are flooding in
Speaking with Business Day TV, Nick Kunze from Sanlam Private Wealth recently chose Clicks as his stock pick.
Kunze admitted that Clicks is not one of South Africa’s cheapest retailers in the stock world. Its price-to-earnings ratio often exceeds 20, indicating a relatively high stock valuation.
However, he said that Clicks’ private label business continues to grow from strength to strength, with a large margin expanion in that area.
He added that the company already has a strong international shareholder base, which will become more critical as South Africa has officially exited the grey list.
With inflows expected to increase now, Kunze said that these inflows will likely go to financial providers and strong companies like Clicks.
Sanlam has a target price of around R420 to R430 for the share, which is well above its current share price of around R330.
Alex Duys from Umthombo Wealth shared a similar sentiment, with the investment company also positive on SA Inc., given the attractive valuations.
Duys noted that foreign investors have been hesitant to buy South African equities and have instead focused on the local bond markets.
“If foreign investors do come back, you can bet your bottom dollar that they are going to start buying businesses like Clicks, Capitec and so on,” said Duys.
“If you can buy Clicks at a relatively attractive valuation with decent growth, we think it’s a good entry point.”
Prominent financial journalist Simon Brown also noted that foreign buyers were bullish on Clicks when they were net buyers of South African equities.
Loading ...