JSE-listed private school group Curro has delivered higher first-half earnings despite the start of 2025 being characterised by persistent economic constraints on SA households.
It said on Wednesday that interest rate cuts and lower inflation were doing little to offset the pressure on consumers.
Curro, a leading for-profit primary and secondary education provider, owns 189 schools and 81 campuses in Southern Africa. The International Examinations Board (IEB) curriculum it teaches provides customers with an alternative to SA’s national senior certificate curriculum, which is more widely recognised by overseas universities.
With 72,109 registered learners, the group reported a slight decline in enrolment at the start of this year compared to 2024, which it said “reflects the broader economic pressures on SA households”.
Last year, however, Curro’s average number of learners was largely flat compared to in 2023, and the group reported an improved financial performance in its latest annual results.
Revenue for the year ended December was up 8% year on year at R5.1bn, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) rose by 9% to R1.26bn.
A 7% increase in tuition-fee revenue saw the group delivering a 13.4% increase in headline earnings per share (HEPS) at 83c, while growing its operating margin from 17.8% to 18.2%.
While some underperforming school assets experienced impairments of R365m, Curro invested R669m into expanding its footprint across Southern Africa, opening two new campuses in Namibia and one in Sandton, Johannesburg.
In terms of capital expenditure, the group said its primary focus in the short to medium term was to capitalise on its existing facilities by growing their capacity utilisation.
“The business is resilient and the group is committed to providing high-quality learning and teaching for all its learners,” said the company.
“While we are experiencing some cyclical challenges with learner enrolment, we are implementing initiatives to address this and remain confident in our ability to fill more of our available capacity over time,” Curro CEO Cobus Loubser said.
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