Cape Town getting a new university campus this year

South African private higher education group STADIO reported a strong financial performance for the past year, with its profit shooting up 17% and headline earnings per share up 28%. 

This was on the back of strong growth in its student numbers, which rose by 10% year-on-year in the first semester to 47,024 and 8% in the second semester to 50,039. 

STADIO revealed this in its annual results for the financial year ended 31 December 2024, which showed the private education group was going from strength to strength. 

It is currently constructing a new university campus in Durbanville, Cape Town, to which the company allocated R32 million in the past financial year. The campus is set to open in 2025.

The private university group was created by Curro from the combination of Southern Business School, Embury Institute for Higher Education, LISOF, and Prestige Academy. 

Backed by PSG, Curro rapidly became the largest independent education group in Africa and snapped up higher education institutions to create STADIO. 

In 2017, Curro unbundled its interest in STADIO and listed STADIO on the JSE in October 2017 to create a separate business purely focused on higher education. 

After listing on the JSE, STADIO bought AFDA, Milpark Education, LISOF, Prestige Academy and Southern Business School, as well as the business of CA Connect. 

AFDA and Milpark Education operate independently, and the other institutions were consolidated with STADIO to form STADIO Higher Education institutions.

The company continued its strong growth in 2024, growing its revenue by 14% to R1.6 billion on the back of higher student numbers and, in particular, in-person learning. 

Crucially, improved revenue flowed through to the bottom line, with STADIO’s profit after tax increasing by 17% to R276 million. 

Profit attributable to the parent was positively impacted by the additional 15.4% shareholding acquired in Milpark Education, substantively effective 31 December 2023. 

Core headline earnings per share, the company’s preferred performance metric, rose by 28% to 31.5 cents per share. 

This enabled STADIO’s board to declare a final dividend of 15.1 cents per share – up 51% year-on-year. 

STADIO is bullish about its future growth, with it being on track to reach its pre-listing forecast of 56,000 students by 2026. 

The company believes it can reach 80,000 students by 2030. 

A major part of this growth is STADIO’s construction of a new campus in Durbanville, Cape Town, which is funded 50% through long-term debt and 50% through cash reserves.

The new build will increase the number of STADIO’s physical campuses to seven, with the group also having structures in Bellville, Musgrave, Randburg, Hatfield, and Waterfall.

STADIO Durbanville