Kforce Inc. (NASD: KFRC), a Tampa FL-based professional staffing firm, reported third-quarter revenue fell 9.0% to $228.3 million from $250.9 million in the third quarter of 2008. However, third-quarter revenue rose 1.0% from the second quarter.

Third-quarter revenue in the company's largest division, technology, fell 10.6% on a year-over-year basis to $117.3 million. Kforce's finance & accounting division fell 19.3% to $41.3 million, and its health and life sciences division posted a 19.0% decrease in third-quarter revenue to $40.5 million.

The company's government solutions division reported third-quarter revenue rose 57.4% to $29.2 million from $18.5 million in the year-ago quarter. Kforce had acquired dNovus RDI, a supplier to the federal government, in the fourth quarter of last year.

Third-quarter technology revenue rose sequentially, from the second quarter, by 3.4%, and finance & accounting rose 0.5% sequentially.

Third-quarter gross margin narrowed to 31.7% from 34.5% in the third quarter of 2008.

Net income fell 71.2% in the third quarter to $2.3 million from $7.9 million a year ago. The company said it took a noncash compensation expense charge of $3.6 million because of an acceleration in the vesting of stock options after the company's stock price exceeded the stock price at the grant date by 50% for a period of 10 trading days.

Kforce estimated fourth-quarter revenue of between $216.0 million to $221.0 million, a year-over-year decrease of between approximately 8% and 10%.

Kforce Inc. (NASD: KFRC)
For the third quarter ended Sept. 30, 2009, compared with the same period in 2008.
Revenue: $228.3 million, -9.0%
Net income: $2.3 million, -71.2%