Specialist engineering and professional services staffing firm Gattaca (GATC:LSE) published a trading update for the 12 months ended 31 July 2018 and expects profits to be broadly in-line with market expectations.

The group reported Net Fee Income (NFI) on a like-for-like basis. Like-for-Like assumes Resourcing Solutions Limited, which it had acquired last year, had been owned for the entire prior period, and is calculated on a constant currency basis

Broken down by segment, Gattaca reported Net Fee Income on a like-for-like basis as follows:

UK Engineering NFI grew 1%, with the group reporting strong performances in its Engineering Technology, Auto, Infrastructure, Maritime, Barclay Meade and Alderwood business units. For the H2 period, the division saw a slight decline of 1%, with a positive performance in the majority of the group’s business units offset by lower RSL (Resourcing Solutions) NFI as well as ancillary Solutions income. The group added that they are encouraged by Q4 trends, reporting that the majority of its Engineering business units are “demonstrating healthy run rate growth”.

UK Technology NFI declined by 4%, with NFI growth in IT of 4% offset by a decline in Telco of 24%. International saw NFI growth of 7%, driven by a growth in the Americas (33%) but tempered by weaker markets elsewhere

Gattaca said that the shift towards Permanent recruitment in the first half continued into the full year, partly driven by the acquisition of a number of RPO Solutions clients, which are high-quality and multi-year contracts. Permanent represented 28% of FY18 NFI compared to 24% in the prior year.

Gattaca also said its cost containment initiatives remain on track and they have achieved their 2018 target.

During the year, the company announced that Brian Wilkinson would step down as CEO as he wishes to retire from full time executive roles.

Earlier this year, Gattaca plc announced a four-year agreement with Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) — the Ministry of Defence procurement organisation responsible for equipping and supporting the UK’s armed forces. Gattaca will support the recruitment of employees across the UK and overseas and assist in the development of new candidate attraction techniques. It will also support the employee onboarding process.

Patrick Shanley, Chairman of Gattaca, commented, "The second half of the year has been one of steady progress for Gattaca as we have worked to stabilise and simplify the business. We are pleased with the performance of UK Engineering and encouraged by the improving trend we saw across Q4 in the majority of our business units. In UK Technology we were pleased with the performance in our IT division, and Internationally our offices in the Americas, in particular, continue to grow strongly. Underlying Profit Before Tax for the full year is expected to be broadly in line with market expectations.”

"We are currently reviewing our international footprint and expect to update the market in the coming months, and our cost containment measures are on track. We are also pleased to report that our CEO recruitment process is at an advanced stage."

The group expects to announce its full year results for the 12 months to 31 July 2018 on Thursday 8 November 2018.

As of last trade, Gattaca traded at £137.00, up 9.38% on the day and 21.40% above the 52-week low of £112.85 set on 3 July 2018. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of £40.41 million.