Specialist staffing firm Empresaria (LON:EMR) is confident of further growth after it delivered record pre-tax profit and an EPS rise in the year just gone.
Investments made in 2014 have now been successfully integrated into the group and the acquisition of Pharmaceutical Strategies opened up a new region in the USA, strengthening its presence in the healthcare sector, it told investors.
The strong profit growth came despite the continued impact of foreign exchange, the group said.
This contributed to group revenue remained broadly flat at £187.3mln compared to £187.9mln in 2014.
However, the group has now enjoyed ten consecutive quarters of net fee income growth, which grew 10% in 2015 to £49.2mln (2014: £44.6mln) as permanent recruitment sales were up 28% year on year.
Pre-tax profit was up 30% at £7.1mln compared to £5.9mln and adjusted earnings per share (EPS) rose 24% to 9.9p.
Notably, the proposed final dividend was increased 43% to 1.0p (2014: 0.70p).
Chief Executive Joost Kreulen said: "Announcing record profit levels and our largest investment for eight years is testament to the strength of our strategy of building a diversified group and developing leading brands.
"We have made good progress against this strategy, with net fee income growth across all of our regions and an improved conversion ratio, helping to reduce debt levels again, down below our target ratio of 25% 'debt to debtors'.
The firm added: "Despite wider market uncertainties at the start of the year we see exciting opportunities to develop our network.
"We are committed to growing the business to drive increased profits and enhanced shareholder value. We look forward to the year ahead with confidence."
The group operates brands in 18 countries across six separate sectors: Technical & Industrial; IT, digital & design; financial; retail; executive search; and healthcare.
Each brand seeks to be a leader in its field, tailoring the brand to the specific needs and requirements of the clients and the candidates.
Almost all of the company's net fee income (NFI) comes from recruitment, with a bias towards temporary staffing, which accounts for 61% of NFI.