At a Glance
- Aspen posts R1.08 billion ($61.34 million) loss in 2025, its first annual loss since 1997.
- Shares drop over R61 ($3.53) this year, erasing billions from Aspen’s market value.
- Dividend payout signals resilience as top investors increase holdings despite recent earnings setback.
Aspen Pharmacare Holdings, Africa’s largest pharmaceutical company, has been a cornerstone of South Africa’s health sector for nearly three decades.
Founded in 1997 in Durban by four businessmen, including Stephen Saad, Gus Attridge, and Steve Sturlese, the company quickly grew from a local player into a global supplier of medicines.
Within a year of its founding, Aspen listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) with backing from Investec, setting the stage for rapid expansion.
Scale and place on the JSE
Today, Aspen carries a market value of about R46.2 billion ($2.66 billion) on the Johannesburg exchange, placing it among the 50 most valuable companies on Africa’s largest bourse.
Its weight on the index is modest at around 0.2 percent, but its importance in the health-care sector, and its reach across markets outside South Africa, give it a presence far greater than the numbers suggest.
A difficult stretch for shareholders
The past year has been testing for investors. Shares that opened 2025 at R164.85 ($9.49) have fallen more than R61 ($3.53), erasing billions in value.
At the heart of the slide is a contractual dispute tied to manufacturing deals, including issues linked to mRNA technology.
The conflict stripped Aspen of more than R22 billion ($1.2 billion) in market capitalization, rattling confidence in a company that for years was seen as one of the most reliable names in African health care.
First annual loss since the 1990s
That pressure showed clearly in Aspen’s latest earnings. For the year ended June 30, 2025, the company reported a loss of R1.08 billion ($61.34 million), a sharp reversal from the R4.4 billion ($249.36 million) profit it delivered a year earlier.
It was the first annual loss in Aspen’s 28-year history, an unwelcome marker for a business that has long prided itself on stability.
Dividend signals resilience
Despite the setback, Aspen moved quickly to calm nerves. On Sept. 3, the company declared a dividend of R2.11 per ordinary share, payable Oct. 6.
While that was 41 percent lower than last year’s R3.59, the decision to maintain a payout even in a loss-making year underscored management’s intent to steady the ship.
Investors stay put
Some of Aspen’s biggest backers are not walking away. Coronation Fund Managers, one of South Africa’s largest asset managers, increased its holding in the company to 11.88 percent last week.
The move signals that, while the mRNA dispute has been costly, Aspen’s global footprint, operational scale and ability to recover continue to appeal to long-term investors.
