SThree plc (LON: STEM) said on Monday that its profit came in better than expected in fiscal 2020. On a year over year basis, however, its annual profit saw a close to 50% decline. The recruiter expressed confidence that signs of recovery were starting to show in the United States, on the back of which, its board decided in favour of resuming dividend payments.
SThree plc shares, that you can learn to buy online here, tanked roughly 3.5% in premarket trading on Monday but gained close to 7% on market open. The stock is now exchanging hands at 338 pence per share after recovering from a significantly lower 200 pence per share in May 2020 when COVID-19 pushed businesses into freezing new hiring.
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CFO Alex Smith to leave the board
In a separate announcement, CFO Alex Smith expressed plans of leaving the board. As per SThree plc, it has already started looking for a suitable successor.
For the year that concluded on 31st December, the international specialist staffing organisation proposed 5 pence per share of final payout on Monday, after skipping dividend payments last year.
The London-based company, however, still acknowledges the uncertainty associated with the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that has so far infected a little under 100 million people worldwide and caused more than 2 million deaths. SThree plc said:
“We see the world’s winning organisations embracing STEM skills in order to thrive, just as those businesses less well suited to the current environment appreciate that they must adapt for the new world quickly to be able to survive.”
SThree reports £1.2 billion of full-year revenue
According to SThree, it generated £1.2 billion of revenue in fiscal 2020 that represents a 9% annualised decline. Its pre-tax profit printed at £30 million or almost 50% lower than last year. The British firm attributed the sharp decline to an 8% reduction in contract net fees as the ongoing pandemic hit the demand for staffing.
As of 30th November, SThree had £154 million of total accessible liquidity, including £50 million available until March under the COVID Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) provided by the Bank of England.
SThree plc performed fairly downbeat in the stock market last year with an annual decline of a little under 20%. At the time of writing, the London-based recruiter is valued at around £452 million and has a price to earnings ratio of 13.79.
