Michael Page shrugs off market turmoil - October 4 2007

Steve Ingham, chief executive of Michael Page International, said on Thursday that the turbulence in financial markets had had little impact on the professional recruitment companys business.

He was speaking after reporting a 38.5 per cent increase in gross profits to 123.4m in the three months to the end of September.

Mr Ingham said that in September across its London, New York and Hong Kong offices, it reckoned it had lost 10 fees because banks had cancelled or put on hold a job search. In the same month it had placed 4,000 people in permanent jobs across the group.

He said: Notwithstanding the recent developments in specific banking sectors, we continue to experience strong demand for talent around the globe and are confident in the ongoing prospects for Michael Page.

The groups reliance on finding jobs for investment banks is relatively small, with banking and financial services accounting for 7 per cent of its business. However, analysts have raised concerns that problems in the banking sector might spill over into other areas of the economy.

Mr Ingham said that investors and analysts ask about MPIs banking business, because they are in banking themselves and see it first hand. But he said the other 93 per cent of the groups business had suffered no impact from any news in the financial sector.

In a trading update for its third quarter, MPI said it had added 10 per cent, or 450 people, to its own staff during the three months taking the headcount to 4,777. The group adds people as it experiences increased demand in existing offices, opens new ones or diversifies into recruiting people for different industry segments.

Mr Ingham said the number had been slightly inflated by the 65 graduates it had taken on during September in the UK.

In the UK, its oldest and most mature market, MPI said gross profits rose 19.9 per cent in the quarter to 40.9m. MPI said it continued to experience good levels of activity across all disciplines and regions. In the first half of the year the growth had been 21 per cent.

Mr Ingham said he was particularly pleased by the performance of the French business, where the growth rate was accelerating, and reached 41 per cent in the third quarter. France makes up a third of MPIs Europe, Middle East and Africa division, which increased third-quarter gross profit by 59.7 per cent to 48.4m.

He said there were enormous growth opportunities in the EMEA region and MPI was on fire in that market.

MPI achieved strong growth in its newer regions, with gross profits from Asia-Pacific up 27.8 per cent to 15.5m, helped by the restructuring of the business in Australia. In the Americas, third-quarter gross profit rose by 81.1 per cent to 10.6m.

Mr Ingham said that while the recruiting industry was competitive in Australia, in other areas it was an undeveloped business.

Profit increases in all its international businesses would have been greater but for the effect of translation into a strengthening sterling.

During the quarter MPI took advantage of a weaker share price, hit by concerns that turbulence in financial markets would eventually hit recruitment, and bought and cancelled 3.2m shares at an average price of 476p costing of 15m. The total bought back for the year so far is 11.5m shares at an average price of 519p, costing 59.7m.

In opening trading the shares slipped 2p to 434p. In July they peaked just below 600p.

From Times Online - April 7, 2008


Michael Page hit as banks slow hiring - Robert Lindsay

Michael Page sent alarm bells ringing across the recruitment sector by warning that it was slowing the hiring of its own staff as the credit crunch was starting to force clients in the UK to cut back on hiring.

Michael Page shares dived 5 per cent to 289p as chief executive Steve Ingham said the group's UK business, accounting for over a third of profits, had started to experience a "weakening" in growth, hit by the early Easter but also "by a further weakening of the banking sector, which is also impacting some of our other disciplines that service banking clients."

Profits in the UK, expected by most analysts to rise some 11 per cent in the first three months of the year, in fact rose by just 6.7 per cent from the same time last year to 47.1 million.

Several investment banks in the City such as UBS, Citigroup and Lehmans are expected to make massive job cuts after writing off billions of pounds of soured investments.

Looking ahead, Mr Ingham said: "Whilst we continue to experience strong activity levels and demand for talent, in certain areas there are signs of more cautionary behaviour."

He said as a result he would not be adding new staff in areas most likely to be affected, particularly in the UK, but would continue to invest in new recruitment consultants in faster growing areas.

The Asia Pacific region continued to grow profits strongly. A slowdown in Tokyo, where the banking sector is suffering, had been offset by strong growth in China and Hong Kong. And Mr Ingham said the fledgling US region had managed to see off the banking slowdown by growing market share.

First quarter gross profit growth across Michael Page was above forecasts, up 33 per cent to 140 million.

Michael Page shares have already fallen 46 per cent in the past years as worries about the weakening global economy have taken hold, but they had ticked up since the start of the year, outperforming the sector on the hope of it could shrug off the economic worries.

Rival recruiter Hays, which is due to report its figures later this week lost 4 per cent to 113.75p.

Michael Page will very likely face a profit warning soon. Sell at 260p.

rubbish and stop deramping.

There is a hell of a lot of downside in this share anyway.

Good to see you are agreeing with me.

Dont forget first quarter gross profits were up 30% at 140million.

ugh

je ne comprend pas

dealerdear you dont understand their RNS results statement for the first quarter to 31/3/08?

It will not produce that profit performance in the 2nd quarter as massive job cuts in the financial sector are underway. Sell at 260p

no you misunderstand, I was repling to hlyeo's post 5

Job cuts create opportunities to place job seekers elsewhere.

It's tougher times for virtually all the recruitment companies at present. The upside for Page will be that some smaller competitors will go to the wall.

MPI has fallen today...more to come as recruitment is not in demand now, especially in the City.

Wow! "MPI has fallen today". What an incredible scoop when the FTSE is down 135 as I write. I can't wait for the next awe-inspiring and insightful headline. Perhaps it will be; "Fish swims!".

Is there a bid situation

MPI has been oversold to 230p...it is now a BUY!

For once I agree with you.

Only if you think the employment market will hold up, and do not be fooled that it is boyant out here in Asia because it if quite the opposite. The SP has only fallen to the pre bid price, so in line with the rest of the market. Other than a dead cat bounce in response to todays sell off not a long term buy in my opinion

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601102&sid=a7Xe0Jp0kDzU&refer=uk

oversold IMHO

U.S. November job losses steepest since 1974 - AFX


WASHINGTON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - U.S. employers axed payrolls by a shocking 533,000 in November for the weakest performance in 34 years, government data on Friday showed, as the recession inflicted a mounting toll on the U.S. labor market.

The Labor Department said the unemployment rate rose to 6.7 percent last month in the highest reading since 1993, compared with 6.5 percent in October, after widespread losses across the country's major industry sectors.

November's job losses were the steepest since December 1974, when 602,000 jobs were shed, and were much worse than forecast by analysts polled by Reuters who had predicted a reduction of 340,000 jobs.

In addition, October's job losses were revised to show a cut of 320,000, previously reported as a 240,000 loss, while September's losses were revised to a loss of 403,000 from down 284,00.

That meant 199,000 more jobs were lost in September and October than previously thought and the total reduction in U.S. nonfarm payrolls for last three months was 1.256 million, with almost 2 million shed in the year so far.

Service-providing businesses alone shed 370,000 jobs in November, following a loss of 153,000 jobs the month before.

The length of the workweek slipped to 33.5 hours, the shortest since records began in 1964, a Labor Department official said.