The best and worst of the JSE

EXTREMES: FIRST HALF WEAK, SECOND A RECORD HIGH

FTSE/JSE All Share Index showed overall gain of 21% over the course of whole year. A big part of these gains was Naspers.

At the halfway point of last year, it seemed that 2017 was going to be another weak year on the JSE. On June 16, the FTSE/JSE All Share Index closed at 50 831, only a little ahead of where it opened in January.

The market was also effectively flat over the previous 36 months, and there was little to suggest it was set for a significant move.

Enter the second half of 2017. In November, the FTSE/JSE All Share Index marked a new record close of over 61 000, eventually showing a 21% gain over the course of 2017.

A big part of these gains was Naspers. The bourse’s largest counter was up 71.8% for the year, having a major impact on the market as a whole.

However, as table 1 shows, there were a number of other big gainers in the large and mid-cap space.

It’s notable that two commodity companies top the list. Coal and iron miners in particular had a good year. This is also reflected in the top-performing market sectors.

According to FactSet and SBG Securities, coal showed a 12-month total return of 92.9%, industrial metals 89.6%, media 71.6%, industrial transportation 34.5%, banks 30.7%, life insurance 27.9%, food and drug retailers 27.8%, general mining 25.7%, personal goods 24.8%, and real estate development and services 24.7%.

Banking ended the year as one of the top five sectors, despite the bank index being depressed for most of 2017. It only spiked at the end of December, following Cyril Ramaphosa’s election as ANC president.

Unsurprisingly, the worst-performing company was Steinhoff International. Its share price collapsed following CEO Markus Jooste’s resignation amid allegations of financial irregularities.

However, only 31 of the largest 105 companies on the JSE recorded a negative performance.

Unlike their coal and iron ore counterparts, gold miners struggled in 2017. Besides Harmony, which appears in table 2, Sibanye and AngloGold Ashanti were also down for the year.

The hospital groups also had a poor year. All three of the big players – Netcare, Mediclinic International and Life Healthcare – were in negative territory.

According to FactSet and SBG Securities, the following are 2017’s worst-performing sectors on the local market: household goods down 93.4%; software and computer 33.6%; fixed line telecoms 30.2%, industrial engineering 23.3%, travel and leisure 19.2%, health care equipment 14.6%, electronic and electrical 14.2%, gold mining 2.7%, pharmaceutical and biotech 2.1% and beverages 1.3%.

There were a number of big gainers in the large and mid-cap space.