JSE Friday Wrap: Resource Gain Offsets Financials Slump as Warnings Dominate

The JSE closed a mixed Friday with the All Share down 0.60% as Financials shed 1.36% and Technology fell 2.35%, while Resource 20 climbed 0.83% and Precious Metals & Mining added 1.54%. Brikor surged 23% after locking in a Nedbank-guaranteed 17-cent cash exit scheme, Wesizwe Platinum rose 8% on a confirmed Bakubung restart, and Randgold gained 18% alongside broader precious metals strength. Against these positives, enX Group collapsed 46% and Crookes Brothers reported a R274 million net loss, underscoring the divergent reporting-season picture on the local board.

BEL Bell Equipment warns H1 earnings to fall at least 50% on demand, pricing and US tariff headwinds

Bell Equipment trading statement has issued a trading statement flagging that EPS and HEPS for the six months to 30 June 2026 will decline by at least 50%, or approximately 113 cents per share, compared to the prior-year period. The company cites three concurrent headwinds: demand softness in key markets, global pricing pressure and US tariff-related margin compression. Management has indicated insufficient certainty on the extent of the decline and will issue a further trading statement once visibility improves, with interim results due on 7 September 2026.

A SA industrial counter warning of a 50%-plus earnings hit on three structural headwinds simultaneously means the interim results will likely show a materially worse bottom line than the market had pencilled in. With no upper bound on the decline disclosed, the risk-reward balance has tilted unfavourably for existing shareholders heading into the next reporting season. The share is already at its 52-week low, and the 50% figure represents a floor, not a ceiling.

The earnings warning reflects cyclical and external pressures rather than company-specific operational failures, leaving the underlying franchise intact for a mean-reversion setup. However, the unaudited nature of the preliminary figures means the final reported numbers could shift on formal review. The next catalyst is the further trading statement and the 7 September interim results, which will determine whether the EPS and HEPS drop settles closer to 50% or extends materially deeper.

CKS Crookes Brothers posts R274m net loss as HEPS swings to a 167.2c loss and dividend is suspended

Crookes Brothers FY2026 results reported a full-year net loss of R274 million for the year ended 31 March 2026, with headline earnings per share swinging to a 167.2 cent loss from 425.1 cent earnings previously. A R258.8 million write-down of the Mozambique macadamia operation dominates the result, but even excluding impairments underlying HEPS turned negative. The board has suspended the dividend and the macadamia exit post-year-end removes a chronic cash drain, though net debt rose to R143.2 million while shareholders' equity fell 27%.

For a SA farming group, losing over R270 million in a year and cutting the dividend removes the income floor that income-focused investors relied on. The underlying HEPS swung from earnings to a loss even before the impairment, reflecting sugar pricing pressure, rising input costs and a 7% revenue decline across the core banana and sugar segments. Net debt climbed to R143.2 million from R98.2 million while shareholders' equity fell 27% to R811.6 million, leaving leverage higher just as earnings power faded.

The strategic exit from the Mozambique macadamia operation removes a chronic cash drain and concentrates capital on the resilient sugar cane and banana segments. Deloitte & Touche issued an unmodified audit opinion, indicating no going concern qualification despite the reported loss, and the macadamia investment has been fully written down to nil, eliminating further impairment risk from this asset. The interim results will show whether the macadamia exit proceeds on stated terms and whether any contingent liability around MML's third-party debt creates additional balance-sheet risk.

TLM TeleMasters guides EPS and HEPS up more than 700% from a near-zero base

TeleMasters initial trading statement issued an initial trading statement indicating that EPS and HEPS for the financial year ending June 2026 are expected to rise by more than 700% from a depressed prior-year base of 0.93 cents and 1.08 cents respectively. The board has attested to a reasonable degree of certainty around the magnitude of the increase. Refined figures and full audited results are expected in September 2026, and the absolute current-period EPS is not yet disclosed.

A greater-than-700% earnings inflection on an oversold, beaten-down small-cap is a genuine recovery signal. Because the share had been trading near multi-year lows with the market not positioned for a beat, this upgrade has real re-rating potential if the September results confirm the magnitude is backed by core operational earnings rather than one-off gains. The share sits at only 36.8% of its 52-week range, indicating significant prior underperformance that the upgrade now challenges.

The caveat is that the figures are unaudited, the current-period absolute EPS is not disclosed, and a three-month gap remains before refined numbers are expected in September. Investors cannot yet tell whether the gain reflects core operations or a one-off such as a disposal or impairment reversal. The regulatory attestation to a reasonable degree of certainty gives the directional read backbone, but the September trading statement and final audited results are where the market will test whether the greater-than-700% uplift is backed by genuine operating recovery.

WEZ Wesizwe schedules phased restart of Bakubung Platinum Mine for week of 29 June

Wesizwe Platinum operational update has confirmed constructive progress in engagements with trade unions and announced a phased restart of the Bakubung Platinum Mine for the week of 29 June 2026. The restart remains conditional on signing a memorandum of agreement with trade unions and will proceed in stages, with medical screening, inductions and statutory inspections before production resumes. No production volumes, cash-burn estimates or headcount details from the Section 189 labour consultation process have been disclosed.

The BPM shutdown is ending, which removes the worst-case scenario for a SA platinum producer. Management reports constructive progress in union engagements, reducing the risk of an extended or indefinite stoppage, and the restart is structured with health, safety and legal compliance prioritised. However, the market had already priced in a resolution after the share ran approximately 40% in the 20 days before this announcement, so this is confirmation of a known trajectory rather than a fresh re-rating trigger.

The unsigned union agreement and the absence of quantified production or cash-flow impact mean investors cannot yet reassess the financial damage or the pace of recovery with confidence. A phased restart requiring medical screening, inductions and statutory inspections implies a slow ramp-up, deferring any meaningful production recovery. The memorandum of agreement with trade unions is the immediate test — without it, the 29 June restart date slips and the filing's positive signal weakens.

BIK Brikor announces firm intention to repurchase all shares at 17 cents and delist from AltX

Brikor firm intention announcement has announced a firm intention to repurchase all ordinary shares excluding those held by the excluded shareholder Nikkel Trading 392 at 17 cents per share via a scheme of arrangement, with the full R19.7 million scheme consideration covered by an irrevocable Nedbank guarantee. The company will delist from the JSE AltX Board following the transaction. The board cites a weak operating environment and an illiquid share register as the rationale, and an independent expert from AcaciaCap Advisors has been appointed to opine on the fairness of the 17 cent consideration.

For AltX shareholders holding a thinly traded counter, the 17-cent cash exit is de-risked by the Nedbank guarantee, providing a defined cash exit price and lifting price ambiguity. The scheme requires a 25% quorum and 75%-of-present threshold to pass, meaning a small minority of holders could bind the full register. Shareholders retain section 164 appraisal rights, preserving a statutory recourse mechanism if the 17-cent consideration is challenged.

However, the board's own rationale frames this as an exit from operational stress rather than a value-creating event. The 17-cent figure has not yet been independently verified against NAV, DCF, or precedent transactions, and the independent expert's fairness opinion is not yet in the public domain. The scheme circular, expected within 20 business days, is where the 17-cent offer will be tested and where investors will find the detailed terms and the expert's opinion.

MRF Merafe finalises Eskom electricity agreements and restarts Boshoek and Wonderkop smelters

Merafe Resources Eskom agreements announced the conclusion of Negotiated Pricing Agreements with Eskom, giving binding commercial effect to the NERSA-approved 62 cents per kWh tariff for the SA ferrochrome industry and enabling the restart of the Boshoek and Wonderkop smelters. A stable three-year electricity pricing framework has been established, providing forward operational cost visibility for the Glencore Merafe Chrome Venture. The detailed NPA terms, restart capex and ramp timelines remain undisclosed.

Removing the electricity-cost overhang that kept two smelters shut is a genuine positive for a SA ferrochrome producer. The NERSA tariff now has full commercial effect, and the three-year pricing framework is genuinely useful for disciplined operational and capex planning. However, the market had already rallied following the earlier tariff-approval announcement, with the share having gained 9.3% in the 20 days before this confirmation, so today is more of a known recovery path being locked in rather than a fresh re-rating event.

The detailed terms and conditions of the NPAs remain undisclosed, so the pricing mechanism, demand commitments and any take-or-pay obligations are opaque to shareholders. The undisclosed restart capex and ramp timelines mean the market cannot yet size the earnings uplift with confidence. The next production or operational update is where the market will test whether the smelter restart is on track, on budget, and producing at a cost that makes the three-year tariff framework economic.

MMP Marshall Monteagle reports audited profit jump to $10.9 million from $373,000

Marshall Monteagle reported audited profit before tax of $10.9 million for the year ended 31 March 2026, up sharply from $373,000 in the prior year, with headline EPS at 25.6 US cents versus 2.2 US cents previously. Total revenue on continuing operations grew to $96.1 million from $81 million. A second interim gross dividend of 2.1 US cents per share was declared. However, the short-form announcement does not disclose cash flow, balance sheet or NAV, and an open warrant exercise window and recent share issuance create a dilution overhang that has not been quantified.

The audited earnings recovery is real and confirmed by an unmodified opinion, with the operating turn not driven by one-off items. Basic EPS rose to 26.2 US cents from 1.0 cent, a sharp year-on-year uplift supported by the dividend declaration. However, the prior year was severely depressed making the percentage swing mechanically inflated, and the share had risen 6.4% into the print, reducing surprise.

The short-form announcement explicitly states it does not contain full or complete details and is itself not audited, leaving critical gaps in the disclosure. Share count expansion is material: weighted average rose to 40.1 million from 36.8 million, and issued shares at declaration reach 46.1 million. An open warrant exercise window creates imminent dilution not yet quantified in the announcement. The full annual report is where the market will test whether operating cash flow backs the $10.9 million profit and whether the dilution from the 46.1 million issued share count is fully quantified.

CHP Choppies CEO buys 70,000 shares on-market at the 52-week low

Choppies CEO Ramachandran Ottapathu purchased 70,000 ordinary shares on-market at P1.49 per share on 26 June 2026, a 52-week low for the stock. The purchase followed a 17-day pre-announcement sell-off and the share now sits approximately 84% below its 52-week high. The on-market nature of the transaction and the personal capital deployment at the bottom of a sustained downtrend are cited as a conviction signal, though the absolute amount of BWP 104,300 is modest relative to the P2.72 billion market cap.

When a CEO puts personal money to work on-market at the lowest price the stock has traded in a year after a prolonged sell-off, it carries more weight than a nil-cost share award or an off-market transfer. The price sits below both the 50-day and 200-day moving averages, confirming a sustained downtrend the purchase does not yet arrest, but the alignment of a beaten-down price with an open-market transaction at CEO level is the constructive part of the read.

The offsetting view is that BWP 104,300 is trivial against a P2.72 billion market cap, so the insider conviction signal is modest in absolute terms. Only one director is disclosed transacting, providing no corroborating insider cluster to support a contrarian read. The next operational or results disclosure will show whether the CEO's conviction at these levels is backed by a stabilising business or remains a lone insider bet against an extended downtrend.

What we are watching

Next week brings Bell Equipment's further trading statement and interim results on 7 September, Crookes Brothers' interim results to test the macadamia-exit and contingent-liability picture, and Wesizwe Platinum's Bakubung restart is scheduled for the week of 29 June pending the union memorandum signing. Merafe's next production update will be watched for smelter restart progress, and TeleMasters is expected to refine its greater-than-700% earnings guidance ahead of audited results in September.