Hays (HAS: LSE) today reported net fees of £1.12 billion for the full year ended 30 June 2019, an increase of 6% on a like-for-like basis when compared to the same period last year.

The group also reported that 19 countries delivered all-time record performances.

During the year, Hays invested in consultant productivity tools and back office scalability and restructured several country operations mainly in Europe which led to redundancy in a number of senior management positions, and incurring an exceptional £6.8 million charge which is expected to deliver circa £5 million of annualised pro-rata cost savings.

Also hitting profitability was an exceptional charge of £8.3 million relating to a landmark legal judgment against Lloyds Banking Group in October 2018 which equalised guaranteed minimum pensions for men and women in UK defined pension plans.

Hays said macroeconomic conditions became increasingly difficult in many of its markets during the period. Candidate confidence generally remained strong, however the company added that it saw clear signs of reduced business confidence, and faced increasingly tough growth comparatives as the year progressed.

Net currency movements versus Sterling negatively impacted results in the year, reducing net fees by £8.8 million, and operating profit by £3.4 million.

Net Fees broken down by temporary and permanent were as follows.

Net Fees by geography were as follows.

Growth reported below is on a like-for-like basis unless otherwise noted.

Within Australia and New Zealand, temporary net fees, which represented 68% of Australia and New Zealand net fees in the year, grew by 7%. Australia delivered net fee growth of 5%, led by the public sector, which represented 36% of Australian net fees, up 7%. Growth in Australian private sector net fees was 4%. New Zealand (5% of ANZ net fees) had a difficult year and was down 17%. The group made management changes and its business sequentially stabilised in the second half of the year.

In Germany, the Temp and Contracting business, which represented 84% of Germany fees, delivered growth of 8%. Within this, the largest business of Contracting increased by 3%, while Temp growth was strong at 19%. The Permanent business, 16% of Hays’ Germany fees, delivered strong growth of 16%.

In the UK & Ireland, Temp, which represented 57% of division net fees, grew by 4%, with the Permanent business flat year-on-year. There was net fee growth of 11% in the public sector although the private sector, which represents 73% of net fees, was tougher and fell 1%.

The Rest of World division, which comprises 28 countries, faced a tough growth comparative, however, 18 countries delivered all-time record net fees. Permanent net fees, which represented 70% of Rest of World, increased by 11%, while Temp net fees rose more slowly at 2%.

EMEA ex-Germany delivered good overall net fee growth of 6%, with ten countries generating record net fees in the year, including Spain, Italy and Poland. France, the largest Rest of World market, increased net fees by 4%.

The Americas grew net fees by a strong 10%, including five of the six countries in the region achieving all-time records. Asia reported net fees up 15%.

Alistair Cox, Chief Executive, commented, “We invested in strengthening our leading positions in key markets like Australia and Germany, while also restructuring some of our European businesses to maximise their profitability. Our UK business delivered a solid result, despite ongoing uncertainties.”

In current trading, Hays said in the first half of its financial year ending 30 June 2020, it will continue to overlap tough net fee growth comparatives versus the prior year.

 “Looking ahead, despite an increasingly tough global economic backdrop, our market positions, combined with our highly experienced global management teams and strong financial position, means I am confident we will continue to appropriately balance our long-term potential with the more challenging markets we currently face,” Cox said.

In trading today Hays set a new 52-week low during today's trading session when it reached £132.00. Over this period, the share price is down -30.31%. As of last trade, Hays shares were £135.20, down 2.80% on the day. Based on its current share price the company has a market value of £2.03 billion.