Irish recruitment firm Cpl Resources (CPL: ID) reported revenue today for the full year ended 10 September 2019 with revenue of €564.8 million, an increase of 8% compared to last year. The group reported continued growth in all of its business sectors and markets.

John Hennessy, Chairman, commented, "I am very pleased to report exceptionally strong earnings growth for the group for the year ended 30 June 2019, reflecting a strong performance across all of our business. This result highlights our clear focus on continuing to grow the business, while evolving our offering to meet shifting market demands and continuing to manage our cost base to improve margins.”

Cpl delivers a range of services through two operating segments - flexible workforce solutions (referred to as the Flexible Talent segment) and permanent recruitment.

Flexible Talent includes managed solutions, temporary and contract recruitment, training and strategic talent advisory services.

The group said demand for flexible workforce solutions continued to strengthen. As a result, Cpl grew Flexible Talent net fee income by 21% to €68.5 million during the year, up from €56.9 million in 2018.

Anne Heraty, CEO, also commented, “We continue to embrace a global demand for workforce solutions and our business model has evolved and adapted in response. Our managed solutions division is experiencing strong, consistent growth and we have recently branded this division Covalen, clearly defining our value proposition and positioning ourselves for future growth both domestically and internationally."

Permanent net fee income increased by 6% to €27.8 million (2018: €26.3 million). The group said divisions such as technology, pharma and financial services performed particularly well during the year, where demand for skilled talent is at a premium. Cpl added that international nurse recruitment remained challenging due to changes in regulation and continuing Brexit uncertainty.

“Nonetheless, there continues to be high demand for nurses and healthcare professionals, and we feel there is great opportunity in the UK healthcare market in the longer-term,” Cpl stated.

Cpl also announced today that Mark Buckley has resigned as COO and Deputy Chief Executive of the group with effect from 30 September 2019 to pursue other opportunities. Cpl did not announce further information on a replacement.

The group also announced that it appointed James Louttit to the newly created role of Chief Information Officer.

Looking ahead, Cpl said trading in the current year has started well.

“We are mindful of the potential macro-economic challenges driven by Brexit and the potential for changes to levels of investment and employment within our client base,” Heraty said. “Should conditions change, we are prepared, we have flexibility in our cost base and we can moderate our growth plans.”

“Our goal for 2020 is to produce another year of growth in revenue and profitability, we are encouraged by our pipeline and the opportunities for growth that we have identified. We will continue to invest in technology which we believe will improve our productivity and enable us to better support our clients by delivering innovative and impactful talent solutions that can grow and transform their businesses,” Heraty said.

As of last trade CPL Resources traded at €6.55, down 5.76% on the day and 9.03% below its 52-week high of €7.20, set on 19 March 2019. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of €179.76 million.