Impellam shares tumble as firm's earnings slide

Managed services and specialist staffing company Impellam Group shares were plunging on Thursday morning, after it announced its unaudited final results for the 53 weeks ended 4 January.

The AIM-traded firm said its revenue for the year was up 4.9% at £2.28bn, while its gross profit slipped 1.1% to £282.3m.

Adjusted EBITDA was down 15.6% at £50.2m, and the company’s operating profit was 48.8% lower year-on-year at £22.9m.

Its adjusted basic earnings per share were off 23.9% at 56.8p, and basic earnings per share plummeted 57.2% to 26.5p.

Impellam’s net debt narrowed by 5.5% during the year, to stand at £71.7m as at 4 January.

“In 2018, Impellam Group made good strategic progress amidst the backdrop of challenging conditions in the UK healthcare, education and retail markets,” said chairman Lord Ashcroft.

“We have continued to invest selectively in line with our strategy, whilst maintaining control on costs and cash.

“Our focus on international expansion to reduce reliance on the UK and to increase scale continues, whilst we continue to strengthen our managed services proposition globally.”

Lord Ashcroft said the firm’s managed services businesses delivered “strong” growth, particularly in Australia, adding that the merger of Impellam’s UK and US managed services businesses had further broadened its capabilities and service offering.

He also noted that the expansion of the firm’s specialist staffing businesses in Europe, with new locations opened in Germany and Switzerland.

“We have also continued to invest in our people and technology to ensure that Impellam Group is equipped to adapt to the changing world of work.”

As at 1009 GMT, shares in Impellam were down 16.89% at 455p.