Moneyweb delists from JSE
Annual costs of more than R3m were key considerations behind the move to delist media company Moneyweb, which, with a market capitalisation of R26m, is one of the JSE’s smallest companies.
Annual costs of more than R3m were key considerations behind the move to delist Moneyweb, which, with a market capitalisation of R26m, is one of the JSE’s smallest companies.
Moneyweb chairman Paul Jenkins said it did not make sense for Moneyweb to be listed given the costs and the low level of trading in the shares.
The annual costs, which represent more than 10% of the company’s market capitalisation and about 17% of its annual turnover, include a board of directors, auditor fees, annual reports and JSE fees.
The media group, launched in 1997, was listed by its founder Alec Hogg in 1999. Hogg, who owned 12% of Moneyweb at the time he resigned from the company in 2012, no longer owns any shares. On Thursday, he said he had no comment on the proposed transaction.
In July, shareholders will get an opportunity to vote on African Media Entertainment’s (AME’s) offer to acquire 100% of their shares. On Monday Caxton, which holds 50.72% of Moneyweb, announced it would accept AME’s offer. Because Caxton’s controlling shareholders, chiefly the Moolman & Coburn Partnership, hold 38% of AME, the two companies are deemed to be related parties. The offer’s terms therefore have to be confirmed as fair and reasonable by an independent expert.
Shareholders are being offered 26c a share cash or AME shares worth 28c per Moneyweb share. The most recent results reveal a net asset value of 16.8c per share at end-December 2016. In the six months to December Moneyweb generated revenue of R17m and a net profit of R342,000.
Before the offer the share was trading at about 14c. It has since risen to 24c.
At the time of the release of the interim results in February, Jenkins said the company had started to reap the benefits from investments made in various areas of the business. He said Moneyweb had diversified its revenue stream and invested in its radio operations. About onethird of the company’s revenue comes from providing financial news content for the SABC.