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Staffline aiming for all three divisions to post operating profits this year

Published: 17:45 30 Jun 2020 AEST

Staffline -

Staffline Group PLC (LON:STAF), the recruitment and training group, said the impact of the coronavirus pandemic has been mixed across the group.

The group said there had been surges of demand reported in key food distribution and production supply chains but these have been offset by declines in demand from sectors where the Government's shutdown was most severe such as manufacturing, retail and classroom-based training programmes.

The board remains cautiously optimistic that each of the group’s three operating divisions will achieve a positive result in 2020 on an underlying operating profit basis.

READ Staffline appoints new chair, food sector boost not enough to offset other losses

The group, which in the past has had questions raised about its invoicing and payroll practices, is being reshaped under new management with improvements being implemented in all key areas: corporate governance, financial reporting processes, management information channels and cross-selling and communication across all divisions.

Group revenue in 2019 declined by 3.9% to £1,076.7mln from a restated £1,120.9mln in 2019, with the decline being partially offset by a full year's contribution from the acquisitions made in 2018.

The underlying loss before tax was £5.8mln versus an underlying profit in 2018 of £29.7mln, while the reported loss broadened to £48.1mln from a restated £17.8mln the year before.

"2019 was a challenging year for the group during which time Staffline faced a number of significant issues. Our new management team are now ensuring that the appropriate measures of strong corporate governance and controls are being put in place,” assured Ian Lawson, the executive chairman of Staffline.

“Clearly in the current year, we are operating within an unprecedented macroeconomic climate as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic; however, Staffline's people have risen to this challenge and maintained an outstanding level of business continuity, enabling us to successfully support our blue-chip customer base.

"Our strong operational base and leading positions in many of the markets in which we operate sit firmly at the heart of our strategy to create the most reliable, flexible and integrated workforce in the UK, delivering both opportunities and jobs, training and re-skilling, and in-turn to deliver value to all stakeholders," he added.

Shares in Staffline were off 2% at 37.25p in early deals.

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