Prosus reports maiden annual profit, lifts dividend 100% under new strategy
Dutch technology investor Prosus reported a maiden annual profit for the year to March 31, 2025 after almost a full year of implementing a new strategy that marks a shift from it being an investment holding company, into a full operating group.
Image: File
Amsterdam and JSE-listed technology group and Naspers subsidiary Prosus reported a maiden profit, a year after the appointment of CEO Fabricio Bloisi, who put the group on a new strategy.
The strategy that Bloisi started implementing in July last year, shortly after his appointment, entailed a move away from being mainly an investment holding company toward building large-scale lifestyle platforms across sectors like food delivery, classifieds, fintech, and edtech. The strong results meant the dividend was raised 100% to €0.20.
Shareholders also benefited from $50 billion in share buybacks through the year that drove 15% growth in net asset value per share. Adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) increased to $179 million versus a loss of $118m last year.
'Prosus is rapidly transforming into an operating technology company, focused on lifestyle ecommerce, and powered by innovation and collaboration. I'm confident our enhanced culture and ecosystem approach, powered by Prosus, will fuel our journey to create the next $100 billion in value,' Bloisi said on Monday morning in a statement.
Ecommerce profitability meaningfully to $443m from $38m, ahead of the group's guidance.
'We expect this momentum to continue and to add at least the same level of incremental EBIT in the 2026 financial year. The 2025 financial year marks the first year that Prosus is free cash flow positive, excluding the Tencent dividend, with a free cash flow improvement of $513m,' said CFO Nico Marais.
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Over the past year, Prosus did two significant deals to strengthen its regional ecosystems. The acquisition of Despegar was completed in May 2025, and its products were being integrated into iFood's Clube membership. Bloisi also mentioned that good progress was being made on the Just Eat Takeaway.com acquisition to create a new 'AI-powered tech champion in Europe.'
In the food delivery business, iFood exceeded growth and profitability targets and drove innovation and ecosystem expansion. Classifieds reported a strong performance with a significant jump in profitability and expanding margins. In the payments and fintech operations, strong topline growth and improving profitability were reported despite challenging market conditions. In Etail, eMAG generated its overall profitability target for the financial year to March 31, 2025.
Prosus' share price nudged up 1.31% to R965.99 on the JSE Monday morning.
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