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Unaudited financial results for the six months ended 30 September 2026
BRAIT P.L.C.
(Registered in Mauritius as a Public Limited Company)
(Registration No. 183309 GBC)
Share code: BAT
ISIN: LU0011857645
Bond code: WKN: A2SBSU ISIN: XS2088760157
LEI: 549300VB8GBX4UO7WG59
(“Brait” or the “Company” or the “Group”)
UNAUDITED FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2026
The Board of Directors (“Board”) hereby reports to Brait’s shareholders (“Shareholders”) on the unaudited
results for the six months ended 30 September 2026.
During the past six months, Brait has made significant progress towards achievement of its value unlock
strategy. The R2.5 billion rights issue which was completed in August 2026 (the “Brait 2026 Rights Offer”),
with its proceeds used to i) redeem Brait’s Convertible Bonds; and ii) facilitate Brait’s participation in the Virgin
Active £175 million capital raise, which was concluded in October 2026.
The underlying portfolio companies all performed strongly. Virgin Active grew LTM EBITDA by 10% and
entered into an agreement to acquire Holmes Place Germany (“HPG”), the leading premium gym operator in
the German market. Premier’s strong growth continued with HEPS growth of 27% post the integration of RFG.
New Look also performed well, growing Maintainable EBITDA by 32% year on year.
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
- Virgin Active completed its £175 million rights issue in early October 2026 to facilitate a £243 million debt
reduction and to provide capacity to fund growth opportunities:
- EBITDA grew by 10% over the last twelve months (“LTM”) to £116.7 million, notwithstanding
challenging trading conditions in South Africa and the United Kingdom.
- The strategic decision to invest in wellness clubs and optimise yield across the portfolio impacted
membership growth, while supporting higher revenue.
- New gym openings and refurbishments continue to perform strongly, with a well-developed pipeline
of growth opportunities.
- Binding agreement to acquire HPG for €135 million (6.3x EV / EBITDA), which provides the business
with a leading platform in Germany, one of Europe’s fastest growing and underpenetrated health and
fitness markets.
- Premier:
- Revenue and profitability growth continued across almost all categories and divisions.
- RFG delivered a strong contribution following its integration, with group revenue and EBITDA
increasing by 39% and 51%, respectively.
- Investment in new bakery capacity is expected to support continued growth, as new bakeries come
onstream.
- Strong cash generation continued, with R1.8 billion of cash generated from operations.
- New Look:
- Maintainable EBITDA increased 32% to £39.5 million as at 30 September 2026, driven by strong cost
management and a reduced mix of lower-margin sales.
- Net debt reduced to £13.6 million, representing 0.3x LTM EBITDA.
- A comprehensive debt refinancing has been completed, providing runway to 2029.
- Brait:
- NAV per share of R2.64 as at 30 September 2026, in line with March 2026 and up 2% compared to
September 2025, on a like-for-like basis adjusting for the Brait 2026 Rights Offer. From an IFRS
perspective, earnings and headline earnings per share were 4 cents (HY26: 21 cents).
- Successfully completed an oversubscribed, fully underwritten Brait 2026 Rights Offer, raising R2.5
billion.
- The Convertible Bonds were fully repaid in September 2026, resulting in R270 million of coupon
savings.
- Available cash and facilities amounted to R3.5 billion at reporting date, and R1.1 billion following the
Virgin Active capital raise.
- Strategy remains to unlock value and optimise the asset base to return capital to Shareholders.
HIGHLIGHTS FOR BRAIT’S INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO
Virgin Active (51% of Brait’s total assets):
- A leading international premium health club operator, Virgin Active’s revenue and EBITDA growth
reflect benefits of the holistic strategic and operational changes resulting from the implementation of the
group’s wellness strategy.
- EBITDA growth of 3% with positive contributions from all territories excluding Australia.
- Territory update to 30 September 2026:
- Southern Africa (33% of group revenue):
- LTM Revenue increased by 5%, largely driven by yield increases across the estate as the
business continued to invest in club refurbishments.
- Attrition rates remained elevated due, in part, to club closures for refurbishment and member
affordability issues, which management continues to address through product improvements,
the loyalty programme and data analytics.
- The focus remains on estate upgrades, with an increase in capital expenditure to enhance
member engagement and experience to support yield increases.
- 605k active members as at September 2026.
- Italy (25% of group revenue):
- Strong sales across the portfolio of clubs with LTM Revenue up 7% year on year.
- Significant growth opportunity remains in the Italian market with new sites identified and leases
signed for 2027/8 opening dates.
- 192k active members as at September 2026.
- UK (23% of group revenue):
- LTM Revenue increased by 6% despite trading conditions remaining challenging, with continued
pressure on consumers and a divergence in performance between premium and lower-end
clubs.
- Significant refurbishment capex is planned to continue to elevate the premium offering of the
estate to drive retention and support yield growth.
- 131k active members as at September 2026.
- Asia Pacific (13% of group revenue):
- An uptick in performance in Australia supported by growth in Singapore and Thailand resulted in
a 7% increase in LTM Revenue.
- Focus remains on operational improvements, price optimisation and improving service levels
across the territories.
- 61k active members as at September 2026.
- Virgin Active completed its £175 million rights issue in October 2026. The proceeds will be used to reduce
its debt by £243 million (including the conversion of the Convertible Preference Shares into ordinary
shares), implying Net Debt / EBITDA of 2.4x as at September 2026.
- Valuation as at 30 September 2026 (performed on a pre-IFRS16 basis):
- Maintainable EBITDA is based on the LTM of £116.7 million (FY26: £114.0 million) which was
adjusted for club closure losses, start-up losses and embedded EBITDA resulting in adjusted
EBITDA of £126.3 million (FY26: £122.0 million).
- The valuation multiple of 9.0x has been maintained, unchanged from FY26.
- Net third party debt of £448.4 million (FY26: £420.8 million) includes a £19.1 million adjustment for
capex spent on club refurbishments and new clubs that have not yet opened.
- Brait’s resulting unrealised carrying value for its investment in Virgin Active at the reporting date is
R9,173 million (FY26: R9,393 million) and comprises 51% (FY26: 54%) of Brait’s total assets.
ACQUISITION OF HPG
HPG is a leading premium gym operator in the German fitness market, Europe’s largest fitness market with a
total of 12.4 million members. The German gym market has shown significant growth over the past decade,
particularly in the premium segment, which is forecast to grow at a compound rate of 9.3% to 2028 (according
to the European Health & Fitness Report 2026). The market is highly fragmented and underpenetrated
compared to other European countries, providing runway for growth. The acquisition fits Virgin Active’s
strategy of building scale and market leadership in key continental European markets.
HPG is a leading premium operator in the German fitness market, with 13 large format clubs across 6 cities
with a total of 84,100 members. For the year to December 2026, HPG is forecast to generate revenue of
€70.2 million and EBITDA of €21.5 million (27% year on year EBITDA growth).
HPG has an experienced management team that will remain with the business and provides Virgin Active with
a strong platform from which to grow in the German market. HPG’s large format estate is well capitalised, with
some incremental capital expenditure required to rebrand the clubs to Virgin Active. The combination is
expected to deliver synergies (mainly in head office costs) which will be partly offset by the royalties payable
to the Virgin Group.
Virgin Active will acquire HPG for a total cash consideration of €135 million (subject to customary completion
adjustments). The implied EV / EBITDA multiple for the transaction is 6.3x 2026 EBITDA. The consideration
payable is considerably less than it would cost to build an equivalent estate. Acquiring a profitable business
gives Virgin Active immediate scale and a leading position in Germany, avoiding start-up losses and the time
required to build an estate and de-risking the build phase.
On a pro forma basis, HPG will contribute c.14% of Virgin Active Group 2026 EBITDA with the International
businesses contributing 56% and South Africa 44% of total EBITDA post the HPG transaction. The
transaction continues Virgin Active’s strategy of increasing non-South African revenues in core markets where
it has the scale and market position to succeed.
The transaction will be funded from Virgin Active’s existing cash resources and completion is expected by
mid-December 2026. Post implementation of the £175 million rights issue, Virgin Active has reduced its debt
by £243 million (including the conversion of its Convertible Preference Shares to ordinary shares). Following
the Virgin Active rights issue, the Net Debt / EBITDA was 2.4x and this will increase to 2.9x post the HPG
transaction.
Premier (31% of Brait’s total assets including structured equity instrument)
- A leading South African FMCG manufacturer, offering branded and private label solutions, Premier
continued to perform strongly with a significant contribution post the integration from RFG.
- Premier’s results for the six months ended 30 September 2026 were released to the market on 10
November 2026:
- Revenue of R14.3 billion up 39% YoY.
- EBITDA of R2.0 billion up 51% YoY.
- EBITDA margin of 13.9% (HY26: 12.7%).
- Return on invested capital of 20.6%.
- Headline earnings per share of 711 cents per share, an increase of 27% YoY.
- Net third party debt leverage ratio of 0.7x, in line with HY26.
- Divisional highlights for the six months ended 30 September 2026:
- Premier’s MillBake business (66% of group revenue) continued its strong momentum despite
challenging economic conditions:
- Revenue growth of 1% to R9.4 billion.
- EBITDA increased by 24% to R1.6 billion through volume growth and a focus on cost efficiencies.
- The Groceries and International division (34% of group revenue) reported strong results mainly from
the consolidation of RFG, with revenue increasing by 370% to R4.9 billion and EBITDA increasing by
400% to R513 million.
- In keeping with Premier’s strategy of being the lowest cost producer through focus on efficiencies, the
business continued to invest in its asset base with capital expenditure of R759 million.
- Valuation as at 30 September 2026:
- Premier is valued at the closing JSE share price of R179.90 (FY26: R174.25). Brait’s shareholding in
Premier is an unchanged 19.0% representing its 31.3 million shares.
- The 4.7 million Premier shares held within the "cap and collar" structure are valued at R854 million,
based on the closing JSE share price. This is offset by borrowings of R791 million as well as an
option liability amounting to R80 million against the structure. The borrowings were included in the
reported cash balance as at 30 September 2026 and were used to facilitate the Virgin Active capital
raise in October 2026.
New Look (4% of Brait’s total assets):
- New Look is a leading fashion retailer operating in the value segment of the clothing and footwear market
in the UK, with a targeted online presence.
- The UK fashion retail operating environment remains challenging, however, the first half of FY2027
delivered an encouraging performance, with record summer temperatures supporting the retail business.
- EBITDA grew 14%, driven by improved margins, tighter controls on stock and markdowns, as well as a
lower cost base.
- Valuation as at 30 September 2026 (performed on a pre-IFRS16 basis):
- Maintainable EBITDA of £39.5 million is based on LTM reported EBITDA (FY26: £36.6 million).
- The valuation multiple has been maintained at 6.5x, a 38% discount to the peer average multiple of
10.4x (FY26: 9.9x).
- No normalisation adjustments were considered in net third party debt of £13.6 million (FY26: £25.3
million).
- The resulting unrealised carrying value for the investment in New Look at the reporting date is R806
million (FY26: R723 million), comprising 4% of Brait’s total assets (FY26: 5%).
Other Investments:
- The remaining carrying value relates to a legacy private equity fund investment.
BRAIT’S LIQUIDITY POSITION
Reporting date
- Following the oversubscribed R2.5 billion Brait 2026 Rights Offer, Brait fully settled its December 2027
Convertible Bonds on 15 September 2026, resulting in a coupon saving of R270 million.
- The available liquidity at reporting date, including cash balances, amounted to R3.5 billion.
- Brait was in compliance with all covenants at the reporting date.
Post balance sheet date
- Following Brait’s contribution of R2.4 billion to the Virgin Active capital raise, which was concluded in
October 2026, Brait has R1.1 billion in available liquidity.
In addition to the summary financial statements for the six months ended 30 September 2026 published on
the website of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (“LuxSE”) today, Brait’s HY27 results presentation booklet is
available at www.brait.com. This announcement is published under the responsibility of the Board and is a
summary of the information in the summary financial statements for the six months ended 30 September
2026, available on the LuxSE website and the JSE cloud link at:
https://senspdf.jse.co.za/documents/2026/JSE/ISSE/BAT/BPLCSep26.pdf and on the Company’s website
http://brait.investoreports.com/investor-relations/results-and-reports/
This announcement does not contain full details and should not be used as a basis for any investment
decision in relation to the Company’s shares.
Port Louis, Mauritius
11 November 2026
Brait’s Ordinary Shares are primary listed and admitted to trading on the LuxSE and its secondary listing is on
the exchange operated by the JSE Limited (“JSE”). The BIH Exchangeable Bonds are dual listed on the JSE
and the Stock Exchange of Mauritius (“SEM”).
LuxSE Listing Agent:
Harney Westwood & Riegels SARL
JSE Sponsor:
Rand Merchant Bank (A division of FirstRand Bank Limited)
Date: 11/11/2026 07:30:00
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