Organisations generally tend to avoid handing out employment contracts when the economy is in a state of uncertainty. The Brexit vote, coupled with candidate shortages in education and NHS pay rate caps, meant that the odds were firmly against Impellam (IPEL) in 2016.
Fortunately, acquisitions made the previous year helped the UK's second-largest staffing business by revenue to find recruitment opportunities elsewhere. With Michigan-based Bartech and healthcare specialist Global Group on board, Impellam ended the year registering a surge in top-line growth and a 21 per cent rise in adjusted cash profit to £70.1m.
Bartech afforded "greater reach and service breadth" in the US market, while Global Group played an important role in winning 10 contracts in the Middle East, including one with a hospital in Qatar that covers 2,500 medical vacancies. Together with recruiter Comensura, which received some much-needed investment, Global Group also helped Impellam to secure a number of public and private sector contracts in Australia.
Analysts at Cenkos forecast adjusted pre-tax profit of £56.9m in 2017, giving EPS of 94.8p (from £57m and 95.9p in 2016).
| IMPELLAM (IPEL) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 764p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 385m | |
| TOUCH: | 760-765p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 863p | LOW: 605p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.7% | PE RATIO: | 9 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 490p* | NET DEBT: | 39% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£bn) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 1.20 | 15.8 | 22.2 | 12 |
| 2013 | 1.20 | -1.1 | -2.3 | 12 |
| 2014 | 1.30 | 31.6 | 59.6 | 14 |
| 2015 | 1.78 | 39.4 | 72.2 | 17 |
| 2016† | 2.14 | 39.8 | 87.4 | 20.5 |
| % change | +20 | +1 | +21 | +21 |
Ex-div: tba Payment: 10 Aug *Includes intangible assets of £301m, or 598p a share †Year-end changed from 2 Jan to 31 Dec in 2016 | ||||
