There is no doubting that recruitment markets are tough at the moment, and the outlook is still far from certain, but Matchtech (MTEC) has delivered solid growth and a recovery in profits by focusing on a buoyant market for UK engineers. Tony Dyer, finance director, said a shortage of skilled engineers combined with strong worldwide demand for British brands such as Jaguar Land Rover were key to the company growing net fee income by 21 per cent to £36.1m in the last financial year.
Strong demand in the automotive sector was matched in aerospace as Airbus develops its A350 planes and Matchtech had a record 6,700 contractors on hire at the year-end. However, reflecting the uncertainty in the wider economy, companies are taking longer to make hiring decisions for permanent recruitment, which meant this segment accounts for a third of placements with contractors making up the majority.
The problems in the financial sector are still being felt in the professional services divisions, Barclay Meade and Alderwood, although losses there halved to £1.4m. Mr Dyer says the business will change to reporting in two divisions - engineering and professional services - for the coming year.
Broker Peel Hunt now expects current year adjusted pre-tax profit of £8.8m, in line with consensus, having pared back its previous £11.3m estimate post-results.
MATCHTECH (MTEC) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 214p | MARKET VALUE: | £50m | |
| TOUCH: | 211-217p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 221p | LOW: 192p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 7.3% | PE RATIO: | 9 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 118p | NET DEBT: | 52% | |
| Year to 31 Jul | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 259 | 12.8 | 39.3 | 15.6 |
| 2009 | 270 | 11.3 | 26.4 | 15.6 |
| 2010 | 264 | 8.6 | 26.4 | 15.6 |
| 2011 | 302 | 6.4 | 20.3 | 15.6 |
| 2012 | 371 | 8.0 | 24.3 | 15.6 |
| % change | +23 | +25 | +20 | - |
Ex-div: 7 Nov Payment: 7 Dec | ||||
