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(Alliance News) - Recruitment and training company Staffline Group PLC on Wednesday said it expects to post an increase in revenue for the first half.
The Nottingham, England-based firm forecasts revenue for the six months that ended June 30 of GBP450.7 million, a rise of 4.7% from GBP430.3 million.
Gross profit is expected to increase 14% from GBP34.2 million to GBP39.0 million.
Recruitment in Great Britain performed strongly throughout the first half across food, logistics and e-commerce. Staffline noted additional margin gains from new business wins in online food distribution and also the effect of exiting legacy lower margin contracts. This was achieved despite challenges in the specialist driving division due to the widely reported acute labour shortages, the firm said.
Staffline's PeoplePlus division also reported an "excellent" performance from its core 'employability' division. The business generated an underlying operating profit for the first six months of the year compared to a loss a year prior.
"Trading has continued to be strong across the first six months of the year to June 30 and is ahead of expectations with all three of Staffline's core divisions delivering a solid performance in the first half. This, coupled with the benefits of the group's cost reduction measures implemented in 2020, in addition to securing new higher margin business, continues to underpin underlying operating profit growth," said Non-Executive Chair Ian Lawson.
"Overall, the board and management team are pleased with both the operational and financial performance for the six months to June 30. Whilst there remains economic uncertainty as we enter the second half of 2021 and ongoing headwinds relating to the pandemic, the group has and will benefit from the loosening of lockdown restrictions across the UK and Ireland," the company added.
The group expects to report its interim results for the six months ended June 30 on September 14.
Also on Wednesday, Staffline confirmed the appointment of Tom Spain as a non-executive director with immediate effect. Spain is the board representative of Henry Spain Investment Services Ltd, the largest shareholder in the company.
Staffline shares were 8.9% higher at 63.40 pence each in London on Wednesday afternoon.
By Amrit Sahota; newsroom@alliancenews.com
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