Lewis Group Limited - Repurchase Of Ordinary Shares On The Open Market

Lewis Group Limited - Repurchase Of Ordinary Shares On The Open Market          
Lewis Group Limited                                                             
(Registration Number 2004/009817/06)                                            
Share Code: LEW                                                                 
ISIN Code: ZAE000058236                                                         
("Lewis")                                                                       
REPURCHASE OF ORDINARY SHARES ON THE OPEN MARKET                                
Further to the announcement on 20 March 2006, shareholders are advised          
that Lewis has now purchased an additional 3% of its own shares on the          
open market through Lewis Stores (Proprietary) Limited ("Additional             
Shares"), acting in terms of the general authority granted by                   
shareholders at a general meeting held on 5 August 2005 ("the General           
Authority"). This has resulted in a cumulative repurchase of 6.36% of           
its own shares.                                                                 
In accordance with the Listings Requirements of the JSE Limited, the            
following information is disclosed:                                             
Repurchases of shares:                                                          
                                 Additional Shares    Cumulative                
                                                      repurchases               
Total number of shares        3,000,100               6.365,000                 
repurchased                                                                     
% of the company"s ordinary                                                     
share                         3%                      6.36%                     
capital in issue                                                                
Total value of shares         R 157 860 300           R 308 802 911             
repurchased                                                                     
Average price paid            R52.62                  R48.52                    
Highest price paid            R57.00                  R57.00                    
Lowest price paid             R44.65                  R41.75                    
Period of repurchases of      21 March 2006 to        21 September 2005 to      
shares,                       27 July 2006            27 July 2006              
excluding closed periods                                                        
Number of shares which may                                                      
still be                                                                        
repurchased by Lewis in       3,635,000               3,635,000                 
terms of the                                                                    
General Authority                                                               
The share purchases were funded from available funds.                           
Directors" statement:                                                           
The directors have considered the effect of the repurchases and are of          
the opinion that:                                                               
1.   the ability of Lewis to continue to pay its debts in the ordinary          
      course of business will not be affected by the repurchases for the        
period of 12 months after the date of this announcement;                  
2.   the assets of Lewis exceed its liabilities, measured in accordance         
      with the accounting policies used in the group"s audited annual           
      financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2006 for a period of     
12 months from the date of this announcement;                             
3.   the ordinary capital and reserves of Lewis are adequate for its            
      requirements for the period of 12 months from the date of this            
      announcement; and                                                         
4.   the working capital of Lewis is adequate for its requirements for          
      the period of 12 months from the date of this announcement.               
Financial effects of the repurchase:                                            
The table below sets out the effect that the share repurchase would             
have had on the earnings and net asset value per share of Lewis, based          
on Lewis"s audited annual financial statements for the year ended 31            
March 2006. These financial effects have been prepared to assist Lewis          
shareholders to assess the impact the share repurchase would have had           
on the financial position and results of operations of Lewis. These             
financial effects are the responsibility of the Lewis directors and             
have been prepared for illustrative purposes only. Due to their nature,         
they may not fairly present Lewis" financial position or results of             
operations of Lewis.                                                            
Cents per share              Before the     After the        % change           
                             Repurchase     Repurchase                          
                             (1)                                                
Earnings (2)                     461.2            472.0         2.34%           
Normalised earnings (2)          521.2            535.3         2.71%           
Headline earnings (2)            464.5            475.6         2.39%           
Normalised headline                                                             
earnings(2)                      524.6            538.9         2.73%           
Net asset value (3)             2425.0           2331.4        (3.86%)          
Tangible net asset value (3)    2425.0           2331.4        (3.86%)          
Assumptions:                                                                    
1.    The numbers set out in the "Before the Repurchase" column has             
      been extracted from the annual results for the year ended 31              
      March 2006.                                                               
2.    The earnings, normalised earnings, headline earnings and                  
normalised headline earnings per share in the "After the                  
      Repurchase" column are based on the following assumptions:                
      -     the total share repurchases were made on 1 April 2005; and          
      -     an opportunity cost of 7.34% per annum before taxation              
(5.21% per annum after taxation) has been applied to such           

             purchases.                                                         
3.    The net asset value and tangible net asset value per share in             
       the "After the Repurchase" column are based on the assumption            
that the shares were purchased on 31 March 2006.                         
Stock exchange listing:                                                         
The shares repurchased will not be cancelled from the issued share              
capital of Lewis, but will be retained by its subsidiary, Lewis Stores          
(Proprietary) Limited.                                                          
Cape Town                                                                       
28 July 2006                                                                    
Sponsor: UBS South Africa (Pty) Ltd                                             
Date: 28/07/2006 05:00:11 PM Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za                     
Produced by the JSE SENS Department