Fourth-quarter revenue fell 6.8% at Kforce Inc. (NASD: KFRC) to $224.6 million. The Tampa FL-based professional staffing firm had posted revenue of $241.0 million in the fourth quarter of last year.

Fourth-quarter revenue in technology temporary staffing, the firm's largest segment, fell 5.5% to $116.8 million on a year-over-year basis but rose 1.8% on a sequential basis.

"Tech flex revenues increased each month throughout the quarter, with a low point in October and their job order pipeline continues to improve," Kforce President Bill Sanders said in a conference call with analysts. "While we typically see a decline in revenue in January due to annual assignment ends, those declines were not as significant as we've seen in previous years and weekly revenues at the end of January have returned to 98% of normalized December levels."

Total technology revenue fell 7.2% on a year-over-year basis in the fourth quarter to $119.5 million. Finance/accounting revenue fell 14.1% to $39.9 million and health and life science revenue fell 16.8% to $37.5 million.

Kforce's government solutions division posted a 34.1% year-over-year increase in fourth quarter revenue to $27.7 million. Kforce acquired dNovus RDI, a supplier of information technology services to the federal government, late in 2008.

Fourth-quarter gross margin narrowed to 31.1% from 33.5% in the year-ago quarter.

Kforce reported fourth-quarter net income of $3.5 million compared with a net loss of $107.9 million in the same period last year. The fourth quarter of 2008 included a noncash goodwill and intangible asset impairment charge of $129.4 million.

Full-year 2009 revenue was Kforce fell 8.7% to $910.1 million from $997.0 million in 2008. Full-year gross margin fell to 31.4% from 34.6% in the previous year.

Kforce reported full-year net income of $12.9 million compared with a net loss of $84.1 million in 2008.

The company estimates first-quarter revenue of between $224 million to $232 million, ranging from a decrease of 3.2% to an increase of 0.3% on a year-over-year basis from first-quarter 2009 revenue of $231.3 million.

Kforce Inc. (NASD: KFRC)
For the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2009, compared with the same period in 2008.
Revenue: $224.6 million, -6.8%
Net income: $3.5 million vs. net loss of $107.9 million

For the full year ended Dec. 31, 2009, compared with the previous year.
Revenue: $910.1 million, -8.7%
Net income: $12.9 million vs. net loss of $84.1 million