UK recruiter PageGroup beats second-quarter profit view as cost cuts bear fruit
PageGroup’s Second-Quarter Performance and Market Outlook
July 13 (Reuters) - British recruiter PageGroup on Monday beat analyst expectations for second-quarter gross profit, as strong hiring in the Americas and Asia, alongside cost cuts, helped offset a continuing slowdown in Europe and Britain.
Cost-Cutting Measures and Regional Performance
The company said its efforts to rein in expenses were delivering results and that several markets in the Americas and Asia-Pacific were improving, even as recruiters grapple with a broader hiring slowdown driven by economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions.
CEO Statement on Market Conditions
"Whilst we have seen improvement and signs of a normalisation in trading in a number of our markets, there remains a high degree of uncertainty in the outlook for the rest of the year," CEO Nicholas Kirk said in a statement.
Profit Forecast and Cost Savings
PageGroup said it expected 2026 operating profit to be in line with analysts' consensus forecast of £28 million ($37 million). It added that cost-saving measures had delivered annualised savings of about £40 million.
Analyst Insights and Regional Breakdown
Analyst Commentary
RBC Capital Markets analyst Karl Green said about 50% of the company's markets had returned to growth, with trends in Europe "much better than feared".
Quarterly Gross Profit Results
PageGroup, which focuses on white-collar recruitment, reported gross profit of £197.6 million for the quarter ended June 30, down 0.2% from year earlier at constant currencies but above the company-provided analyst consensus of £186.8 million.
EMEA and UK Performance
Gross profit at PageGroup's Europe, Middle East and Africa business fell 4.8%, hit by weak hiring in Germany, France and the Middle East. UK profit was down 5.3%.
EMEA is the group's largest division, generating more than half of group gross profit, while the UK accounts for 11%.
UK Market Outlook
"The (UK) market remains tough but stable, with pockets of optimism beginning to appear in Page Executive, Interim and Technology," the company said, referring to its executive, contract and technology industry hiring businesses.
Additional Information
($1 = 0.7474 pounds)
(Reporting by Prerna Bedi and Nithyashree R B in Bengaluru. Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar and Mark Potter)
