South Africa-based recruitment firm AdvTech (ADH: SJ) reported revenue today for the six months ended 30 June 2019 of ZAR 2.49 billion (USD 162.2 million), an increase of 14.8% compared to the previous year’s results.

AdvTech adopted International Financial Reporting Standard 16 and have restated last year’s unaudited figures for H1 2018 for comparison.

The group said its diverse portfolio allowed for a resilient performance in tough market conditions. It added that operating profit was impacted by restructuring costs and the cost of setting up international college Crawford International in Kenya, together with a decrease in operating profits in the resourcing division.

AdvTech said within its Resourcing division, the Mauritius-based business which operates outside South Africa, continued to experience strong revenue growth, while the growth in operating profit was impacted by the investment in additional service offerings. The South African-based business saw placement volumes and operating profits decline, with the country experiencing reduced employer confidence and the highest levels of unemployment in approximately 15 years. However, it added the division remains highly cash-generative.

The group said its Schools division reported strong growth as the Crawford International School in Kenya contributed to growth and the Makini Schools, which experienced several years of student numbers declining prior to being acquired, achieved positive growth. AdvTech also reported strong growth in its University/Tertiary division.

During the period, AdvTech announced that it completed the acquisition of Monash South Africa, a South African private tertiary education institution with students from more than 50 countries.

“The strategic rationalisation and organisational restructure in the schools division will have positive benefits for our business and stakeholders,” the company stated. “We continue to undertake integration, consolidation and rationalisation to drive operational efficiencies and sharpen market focus while increasing our presence in the mid-fee sector. The tertiary division remains well positioned and continues to increase its presence in the higher education sector.”

“In the current challenging socio-economic environment in South Africa, AdvTech is exercising prudence in continuing to advance its strategic objectives of improving academic quality and access to our offerings, while driving operational and structural improvements to maximise efficiencies across the business,” the company stated.

As of last trade Advtech traded at ZAR 1,079.00 (USD 70.03), down 1.28% on the day and 8.88% above its 52-week low of ZAR 991.00 (USD 64.32), set on 8 April 2019. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of ZAR 5.97 billion (USD 387.4 million).