(Bloomberg) -- Naspers Ltd. reported earnings in the middle of its range of estimates as Africa's biggest company by market value benefited from its stake in Chinese Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd and cut losses at its e-commerce businesses.
Adjusted net income, which the company calls core headline earnings, climbed 65 percent to $3.50 per share in the six months through September, Cape Town-based Naspers said in a statement on Wednesday. That compared with 31 percent growth the previous year. Naspers said Nov. 17 that profit by this measure would rise 62 percent to 67 percent. Tencent, in which Naspers holds about 33 percent, earlier this month posted third-quarter net income that beat estimates.
“The group will continue to drive scale to bring its e-commerce business to profitability and cash generation,” said Chief Financial Officer Basil Sgourdos. “We will manage macro challenges in the more mature businesses through tight cost controls and will continue to innovate and reposition our businesses to counter increasing competition by global players.”
Naspers is seeking to grow its business outside of Tencent, which contributes the bulk of the company's profit. It has transformed itself from a local newspaper and pay-TV provider into an international owner of internet companies ranging from online travel agents in India to education software providers in the U.S.
Naspers shares rose 0.2 percent to 3,788.41 rand as of 3:23 p.m. in Johannesburg, paring the year's gains to 88 percent. It's the year's best performer on the FTSE/JSE Africa Top40 Index.
To contact the reporters on this story: Janice Kew in Johannesburg at jkew4@bloomberg.net, Loni Prinsloo in Johannesburg at lprinsloo3@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rebecca Penty at rpenty@bloomberg.net, John Bowker
©2017 Bloomberg L.P.
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