Monthly JSE Investment Insights: November 2025

November is a critical month where investors often begin to position their portfolios for the year-end and the new year ahead. Historically, it can be a period of renewed activity as market participants look for undervalued opportunities. This year, investors will be watching for any shifts in global monetary policy, particularly from the US Federal Reserve, as this heavily influences capital flows into emerging markets. Domestically, upcoming data on inflation and consumer spending will be crucial, especially with the festive season approaching. For traders and investors, November is a time to look through recent corporate earnings and strategic updates to identify companies with positive fundamentals and clear catalysts for growth.

British American Tobacco (BTI)

British American Tobacco has been navigating a significant transformation, shifting its focus from traditional cigarettes to new generation products (NGPs) like vapes and oral nicotine pouches. This strategic shift is beginning to show tangible results. In its recent trading updates, BTI confirmed that its NGP division is on track to achieve profitability by the end of 2025, a major milestone that proves the viability of its long-term strategy. The company's Vuse brand has solidified its position as the global leader in vaping, and its Velo brand is a strong competitor in the oral nicotine space. Despite the well-documented decline in combustible cigarette volumes, BTI's pricing power in this segment remains strong, ensuring cash flow to fund its NGP expansion and reward shareholders. This strong cash generation unlocks a very attractive dividend yield, which offers a defensive cushion for investors. Given these factors, achieving NGP profitability and sustained cash flow, analysts see significant value in the share, which has lagged its peers. The share price has the potential to surge upwards by approximately 9% from current levels to trade near the R1,029 mark as the market fully prices in the success of its transformation.

Clicks Group Limited (CLS)

Clicks has firmly established itself as a premier defensive share on the JSE, consistently delivering growth even in a constrained consumer economy. The company's full-year results, released on 23 October 2025, confirmed this resilience. Clicks reported a 13.7% increase in headline earnings per share (HEPS), landing comfortably within its guided range. This performance was driven by strong health and beauty sales, and the outstanding growth of its pharmacy network, which saw sales climb 12.1%. A key factor supporting the investment case is the group's aggressive store rollout and capital investment plan. Clicks plans to open 40 - 50 new stores and 30 - 40 new pharmacies in the next financial year, ensuring its growth trajectory continues. Furthermore, its pharmaceutical distributor, UPD, continues to gain market share. This relentless focus on expanding its footprint and gaining market share in the non-discretionary health sector provides clear, visible earnings growth potential. Based on this proven execution and defined expansion strategy, the share is poised for further gains, with a potential upside of around 7.6% from its current level, suggesting a fair value target of R383.76.

Investec plc (INP)

Investec has successfully navigated a volatile economic environment to deliver strong results. In its most recent pre-close update ahead of its interim results, the bank and wealth manager signalled that its earnings per share are expected to show robust growth. This performance is backed by the strong momentum in its UK and European businesses, which have benefited from higher interest rates and successful client acquisition in its wealth management division. A key factor supporting the investment case is Investec's simplified and more focused business model. Having demerged its asset management division, now Ninety One (N91), the group is concentrating on its core strengths in private banking and wealth management, which generate high-quality, recurring revenue. The company has also maintained a strong capital position, providing both a buffer against uncertainty and the flexibility to pursue growth opportunities. With its focus on high-net-worth clients and its solid capital base, analysts believe, the market is yet to fully appreciate its earnings potential to increase by approximately 7.3% from current levels to trade near R142.32.

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** This article was prepared by BROKSTOCK analyst Maboko Seabi