Discovery Bank swings to profit

Discovery Bank swung into profit in the six months to December, reporting earnings of between R210 million and R230 million after a loss of R145 million in the prior period, it announced in a trading update on Thursday.

The group’s share price firmed to a 52-week high as investors reacted positively to the operational update and trading statement.

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The stock changed hands at R263.81 at around 1pm – over 8% higher than the previous day. It closed at R262.30.

Normalised headline earnings per share (Heps) are forecast to increase by 24-29% to between 842.7 cents to 876.7 cents, while basic earnings per share are expected to climb by 25-30%.

Normalised profit from operations is projected to grow by 22-27%, supported by a 12% rise in new business annual premium income.

Headline earnings are expected to increase by 27-32%, reflecting what the group describes as a strong overall performance for the period.

Discovery Bank performed ahead of plan and there was a further acceleration in the acquisition of clients, averaging approximately 1 500 customers per day by the end of the reporting period.

Read: Big HealthyFood changes ahead at Discovery Vitality

Salient figures 

Additionally, all key metrics performed well – the credit loss ratio, increases in non-interest revenue and net interest income – illustrating the consistent quality of customers and their levels of engagement and primacy, the group notes.

It says the Vitality shared-value model continued to drive performance across its South African and global operations, contributing to improved margins in short-term insurance, stronger returns on capital in long-term businesses and scalable growth in the bank.

Expected growth in normalised profit from operations:

• Discovery Life: up between 13% and 18%;
• Discovery Health: up between 3% and 8%;
• Discovery Invest: up between 0% and 5%;
• Discovery Insure: up between 32% and 37%;
• Discovery Bank: profit increase of between R210 million and R230 million (from prior loss of R145 million); and
• Discovery South Africa: up between 16% to 21%.

Expected normalised profit from the Vitality international businesses:

• VitalityHealth: up between 95% and 100%;
• VitalityLife: up between 5% and 10%;
• Ping An Health Insurance: up between 33% and 38%;
• Vitality Network: profit down 45% and 50%;
• Vitality Health International (other): losses reduced by between 85% and 90%; and
• Vitality (UK & global): up between 38% and 43%

Discovery says further details will be released with its interim results, expected on Monday 3 March 2026.

Read: Not only sleep-tracking, big Discovery Vitality changes ahead

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