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View All NewsRecruit Holdings revenue up 4% in fiscal fourth quarter; HR tech leads growth
Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd., one of the world’s largest staffing firms, reported revenue rose 4.3% to ¥580.3 billion (US$5.2 billion) in its fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31. The fastest growth took place in the Tokyo-based company’s “HR Technology” segment, which includes job board Indeed and recently acquired Glassdoor. Revenue was up 45.4% in this segment during the quarter.
Revenue by segment
| (¥billions) | Q4 2018 | Q4 2017 | % change | Q4 2018 (US$millions) |
| HR Technology (Indeed and Glassdoor) | ¥90.0 | ¥61.9 | 45.4% | $0.8 |
| Media & Solutions | ¥193.7 | ¥181.2 | 6.9% | $1.7 |
| Staffing | ¥304.1 | ¥319.9 | -4.9% | $2.7 |
Revenue growth within the HR technology segment was mainly attributed to increased sponsored job advertising revenue from new and existing enterprise clients at Indeed and the contribution from Glassdoor, which Recruit acquired in June 2018.
Recruit has staffing operations in the US, Europe and Australia as well as Japan. Its overseas operations include Staffmark Holdings in North America, Recruit Global Staffing BV in Europe and Chandler Macleod Group Ltd. in Australia.
Staffing revenue outside of Japan fell 10.6% to ¥170.7 billion (US$1.54 billion) in the fourth quarter. The company cited an uncertain outlook for the European economy, while it continued to focus on profitability improvement and simplifying the operational governance model in Europe. Japanese staffing revenue rose 3.5% to ¥133.4 billion (US$1.20 billion).
For the full fiscal year 2018, revenue rose 6.3%. Overseas revenue increased to approximately 46% of total by acquisitions of USG People and Glassdoor, and growth in the HR technology segment.
Full-year results
| (¥billions) | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | % change | FY 2018 (US$millions) |
| Revenue | ¥2,310.7 | ¥2,173.3 | 6.3% | $20,843 |
| Gross profit | ¥1,169.1 | ¥1,014.2 | 15.3% | $10,545 |
| Gross margin | 50.6% | 46.6% | ||
| Profit for the year | ¥174 | ¥152 | 14.9% | $1,571 |
Guidance
Recruit expects full-year 2019 revenue and adjusted EBITDA for all three segments to increase, with adjusted EBITDA ranging from ¥310 billion to ¥330 billion.
Revenue in the HR technology segment is expected to grow approximately 35% on a US-dollar basis, while the media and solutions segment is expected to continue stable growth. Revenue for marketing solutions is expected to grow by mid-single digits, and HR solutions is expected to grow in the low-single digits. The staffing segment’s revenue is expected to grow by low-single digits, comprised of an increase in both Japan and overseas operations.
Share price and market cap
Recruit shares closed down 1.65% at ¥3,222.00 in Tokyo today; the company had a market cap of ¥5.56 trillion, according to FT.com.