South African tycoon Adrian Gore to pocket $5.3 million in dividends from Discovery

Adrian Gore, the South African insurance executive and co-founder of Discovery Ltd., is set to receive R91.65 million ($5.3 million) in dividends from his stake in the financial services group, reinforcing his standing as one of the top dividend earners in the insurance sector.

The medical insurer declared a final dividend of R1.37 billion ($77.93 million) to shareholders for the fiscal year ended June 2025. The payout, set at R2.01 ($0.015) per share, will be distributed on Oct. 20. This represents a 32 percent increase from the previous year underscoring stronger cash flows across its businesses including international units that have begun contributing more meaningfully to earnings.

Gore, who serves as chief executive, holds a 6.71 percent stake, or about 45.6 million shares. That holding makes him one of the largest individual beneficiaries of the payout, which is being funded from income reserves as part of Discovery’s policy of steady cash returns to investors. The group’s retained earnings climbed 19 percent to R48.65 billion ($2.78 billion), strengthening its balance sheet and leaving headroom for both expansion and dividends.

Discovery’s full-year profit surge 27%

The stronger payout comes alongside a robust set of results. Discovery reported a full-year profit of $545 million, up 27 percent from the prior year, with its health, life and Vitality units all contributing to growth.

Normalized operating profit advanced 20 percent to R15.21 billion ($867.59 million), while headline earnings rose 30 percent to R9.63 billion ($549.1 million). Earnings per share increased 26 percent to 1,402 cents, compared with 1,110 cents a year earlier.

The group’s net asset value rose 21 percent to R65.7 billion ($3.75 billion), while total assets expanded 17 percent to R327.45 billion ($18.67 billion). Discovery’s financial leverage ratio eased to 16.8 percent, a sign it is emerging from years of heavy investment into a more measured stage of organic growth.

Adrian Gore’s Discovery marks shift to scaled organic growth

Adrian Gore, who co-founded the insurer with Barry Swartzberg in 1992, is one of the top shareholders. The Johannesburg-based financial services group has grown from a medical insurer to one of South Africa's most diverse financial institutions under his leadership. 

It now works in health, life, investments, insurance, and banking. The medical insurance company's total assets grew by 17 percent to R327.45 billion ($18.67 billion), and its retained earnings grew by 19 percent to R48.65 billion ($2.78 billion). 

Discovery's ability to keep double-digit earnings growth while building up its capital buffers shows how strong it is, even though the economy is still putting pressure on it at home and abroad. For shareholders, like Gore, the higher dividend shows that the company is balancing reinvestment with steady cash returns.