Providing workers for blue-collar jobs and delivering government welfare-to-work programmes puts Staffline (STAF) at the centre of recent big political upheavals. Post Brexit, there is uncertainty over the position of EU workers in the UK job market, not to mention a new prime minister and new boss at the department for work and pensions.
But while the political landscape may have shifted, Staffline's ability to operate successfully within in it appears undiminished. "Brexit hasn't really made any difference," says chief executive Andy Hogarth. He points out that although there may ultimately be more restrictions on using labour from outside the UK, this should make it easier for Staffline to find jobs for the unemployed Brits it has on its books.
Aside from reassuring comments on Brexit, the other key feature of these results was the continued degearing of the balance sheet. Net debt was slashed by almost a third and Staffline says that strong cash generation should keep driving debt lower with a net cash position expected by the end of 2017.
First-half underlying pre-tax profit rose 51 per cent to £15.2m driven by a strong showing at the staffing division and the contribution from recent acquisitions.
Analysts at finnCap expect adjusted pre-tax profit of £35.9m for the full year, giving EPS of 111p, up from £28.3m and 91.4p in 2015.
| STAFFLINE (STAF) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 904p | MARKET VALUE: | £250m | |
| TOUCH: | 900-908p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,640p | LOW: 725p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.5% | PE RATIO: | 17 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 299p* | NET DEBT: | 53% | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 297 | 0.8 | -2.2 | 7.5 |
| 2016 | 415 | 11.4 | 39 | 10.5 |
| % change | +40 | +1325 | +40 | +40 |
Ex-div: 13 Oct Payment: 15 Nov *Includes intangible assets of £119m, or 429p a share | ||||
