Economy teaches private schools a hard lesson
Share prices slide as financially strapped parents pull pupils out
As parents look for more affordable alternatives when it comes to their children's education, private-school companies such as Curro Holdings are feeling the pinch, with Curro shares falling more than 28% this year. The PSG Group-controlled company and AdvTech, owner of Crawford Schools and Trinityhouse, have highlighted the issue of pupils leaving, despite an increase in enrolments overall in their most recent financial presentations. At the close on Friday, Curro's shares were trading at R31.02. AdvTech, which once rebuffed a takeover bid from Curro, has seen its shares weaken 4.03% this year. In comparison, the JSE All Share fell 3.6%. Casparus Treurnicht of Gryphon Asset Management said the companies were being affected by the slowdown in the economy, which had eaten into the disposable income of the average citizen. During recent tougher economic conditions, he said, parents also considered government schools which offered the same standard of schooling or even better than some...
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