Johannesburg, May 24 - South African food and pharmaceuticals group Tiger Brands posted a 25 percent rise in first-half headline earnings per share on buoyant consumer spending, but cautioned that full-year profit would not keep pace with the first half.
"It is expected that the rate of growth in headline earnings per share for the full year... will be well below the rate of increase reported for the first six months," a statement on Thursday said.
Although economic indicators remain positive for the second half, favorable seasonable factors in the first half would not be repeated, it added.
Shares of the firm, South Africa's biggest consumer-branded products group, closed down 1.04 percent at 191 rand, falling after the results were released.
Tiger Brands said headline EPS for the six months to end-March rose to 659.6 cents from 526.2 cents in the same period a year earlier. The rise was at the top end of the company's own forecast for a 20-25 percent increase.
Headline profit, the main measure of profit in South Africa, strips out non-trading, capital and certain extraordinary items.
Turnover from continuing operations gained 27 percent to 9.52 billion rand ($1.34 billion) while operating profit before one-off items jumped 34 percent to 1.58 billion rand.
"The increase in operating income reflects the ongoing strong level of demand for the company's basket of branded consumer goods," it said.
Tiger Brands manufactures popular South African foods like Jungle Oats and Tastic rice and is also the country's largest grain trading company.
The strong performance in fast moving consumer goods was partially offset by a disappointing result in the firm's healthcare interests, where operating profit fell 3 percent.
Last month, Tiger Brands said it would divest its drug and hospital interests and the firm said on Thursday the evaluation process on whether to sell or unbundle and list them was still under way.