May was a painful month for ZSE investors as the exchange dropped around 18% from the beginning of the month’s values. Losses were felt in all but 9 counters (6 gainers and 3 non-movers) as changes in the regulatory and tax environment gave investors the jitters. As we start the month of June and with clear signs that the dust is settling and the ZSE is trending upward again it’s time to accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative. Let’s look at counters that we believe will have a very warm June despite the temperatures getting lower in the country. These do not constitute financial advice, for that you can speak to your advisor. Any counters that do indeed turn out to give good returns it is purely coincidental. Similarly, if any do not work out. The information below is for academic and entertainment purposes only.

OMTT

I’m a fan of the Old Mutual Top Ten ETF and love its structure. The only index fund on the ZSE it has performed very well since inception. Heavyweights were amongst the hardest hit during the turmoil of May and it is unsurprisingly heavyweights that have started the recovery process of the ZSE. Nothing says heavyweight like the OMTT and you can expect an increase in its Net Asset Value as the markets adjust to the new normal, however long it lasts.

Axia

A was flying high in 2022 only to be shot down harshly in May. Reaching a high of ZWL$209.57 and a low of ZWL$103in May, it is currently trading at ZWL$138. I would be surprised if Axia fails to regain a chunk of its lost value. Also, note that Axia has a financial year-end of June. Axia’s move to purchase a stake in the giant National Foods Distribution through its Distribution Group Africa is one for the future that will bolster their increasing volumes as per their third-quarter trading update released earlier this year.

Econet

Another heavyweight that took a beating from the regulatory inspired uncertainty of May was Econet. After peaking at ZWL$331.71 just at the end of April it nose dived to ZWL$183.38 where it hung around before it started to recover. Trading ZWL$238 at present Econet’s recovery has been encumbered by its delay in publishing full-year financial results which were due at the end of May but they have since sought an extension. Not very encouraging in a market where companies with March year ends have published their results but Econet has communicated that the issue has to do with the valuation of fixed assets with a touch of foreign currency issues. Those results are more likely than not to confirm a good financial year for the telecoms giant and no one would argue against it breaking to new highs.

OK Zimbabwe

OK, Zimbabwe has been through some tough times but it seems to be finding its feet again. They joined an illustrious club of former associates that have also decided to pay part or all of their dividends in US dollars. OK proposed a final dividend of 36.5 Zimbabwean cents AND 0.13 US cents per share. While we await their full-year results their bullish attitude towards dividends is likely to be backed by good financials as was the same decision by Delta which announced dividends before their financial results. Their 3rd quarter update suggested good things to come for the full-year results with the grand challenge back in full swing everything is OK!

Delta

Delta beverages also announced a hybrid dividend of 120 Zimbabwean cents and 0.6 US cents almost a full week before announcing their full-year financial results. The results were impressive and surely set up Delta for some value gains. The general direction of Delta has been up and the effects of May’s turmoil were rather minimised. Their full-year report was extremely impressed with not only volume increases but also profitability increases. Delta will reap the benefits of the impressive dividend and results in June to give investors some good value.

The 3rd company to declare a US dollar dividend was AfDis (US 0.3 cents) though in full. There’s a lot of good value in the ZSE, especially after the “discounts” following the market correction in May.