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RNS Number : 0743O Parity Group PLC 29 September 2023
PARITY GROUP PLC
INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS TO 30 JUNE 2023
29 September 2023
Parity Group plc ("Parity" or the "Group"), the data and technology focused
professional services business, announces its half year results for the six
months ended 30 June 2023 ("H1 2023").
Headlines
· In spite of challenging market conditions, revenue for the first half
of 2023 was just 10% lower than the second half of 2022.
· Close to break even on an Adjusted EBITDA basis for H1 2023.
· Net debt significantly reduced.
Mark Braund, Executive Chairman of Parity Group plc, said:
"The team has completed the task of rebuilding the core recruitment business
after years of underinvestment, to position Parity as a recruiter of strength
in the UK's public sector, at a time when there are increasing headwinds
affecting the broader recruitment market.
Whilst our business in the public sector has been resilient, we too have been
affected by these headwinds in areas where we sought to grow such as the UK's
commercial private sector.
The changes made to the business have enabled Parity to act quickly, tuning
itself far more rapidly than before to operate at a fit-for-purpose scale and
cost base.
As we reflect on Parity's position in the market, we continually review the
Company's businesses to determine the best medium and long-term direction for
Parity for the benefit of its shareholders."
Contacts
Parity Group PLC www.parity.net (http://www.parity.net)
Mark Braund, Executive Chairman + 44 (0) 208 171 1729
Mike Johns, CFO
Allenby Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser and Broker)
David Hart / Dan Dearden-Williams (Corporate Finance) +44 (0) 20 3328 5656
Tony Quirke /Guy McDougal (Sales and Corporate Broking)
Overview
After years of underinvestment and neglect, the team has completed the task of
rebuilding the core recruitment business to position Parity as a recruiter of
strength in the UK's public sector.
In the year prior we had removed the substantial overhead associated with the
previous management team's failure to build a profitable consulting business
and reinvested a small portion into re-establishing Parity's heritage as a
well-recognised recruitment brand.
In line with many others within the recruitment sector, Parity has seen market
conditions become more challenging with economic uncertainty resulting in
clients and new business opportunities deferring hiring decisions. As a
result, first half revenues were 10% lower than that achieved in the second
half of 2022.
During H1 2023, Parity successfully won a place on the coveted public sector
RM6277 framework, which has an estimated spend of circa £2bn over the next
four years, though it is not possible at this stage to quantify what level of
revenue might accrue to Parity. This framework, which went live on 25 July
2023, represents a significant opportunity for Parity to expand further into
the public sector at a time when there are increasing headwinds affecting the
broader recruitment market.
In spite of the lower H1 performance, the business has improved its working
capital management and reduced net debt to £0.7m as at the 30 June 2023
(compared with £2.3m net debt as at 31 December 2022).
With market conditions not expected to improve in the near term and a key
commercial client in the private sector signaling a shift towards a more
global supply chain, Parity is prioritising resources to exploit its strengths
and opportunity within the public sector, and in particular the new RM6277
framework. As a consequence, the new business initiatives targeting the
private sector, which included permanent recruitment services, were scaled
back, with a resultant reduction in headcount.
Historically, Parity's core business, servicing contract recruitment within
the public sector, has been one of the most resilient areas when recruitment
markets turn down. The Company sees this as a core strength of the business
and will be looking at how the Company can leverage this.
As we consider the scale of the business, its strength and value in public
sector, we continually review the Company's businesses to determine the best
medium and long-term direction for Parity for the benefit of its shareholders.
Financial Summary
Revenue and net fee income
Group revenues in H1 2023 of £17.6m were 10% lower than those in the second
half of 2022 and 16% lower than H1 2022.
Net fee income in H1 2023 of £1.3m was 18% lower than the second half of 2022
with a shift in the mix of clients resulting in average margin reducing from
7.4% to 7.0%. Against H1 2022, net fee income was 35% lower. However, H1
2022 included £0.3m from a legacy managed service contract that ended in Q1
2022. Excluding this discontinued business line, net fee income for H1 2023
was 21% lower than the same period in 2022, with lower permanent recruitment
accounting for 3% and lower contract recruitment 18%.
Operating costs
At the beginning of the 2023, the Group took the decision to invest in
existing and new business areas to facilitate growth. A consequence of this
was that the business carried a higher cost base through the first half and
incurred an overall adjusted EBITDA loss for the period of £0.3m. With the
additional costs associated with servicing the working capital facility,
pension deficit contributions and IFRS16 amortisation, the overall loss before
tax for H1 2023 was £0.6m.
Following a review of the business at the end of the half year, the Group has
rationalised the cost base to facilitate a return in the future to a positive
adjusted EBITDA. This cost rationalisation is expected to deliver a net
reduction in monthly expenditure by £75k.
Cash and net debt
Net debt as at 30 June 2023, excluding adjustments for IFRS 16 lease
liabilities, was £0.7m (30 June 2022: net debt of £4.5m, 31 December 2022:
net debt of £2.3m).
The significant fall in net debt since the end of 2022 is primarily due to the
improved debtor performance and payment by a key client of outstanding and
overdue invoices following the resolution of their internal processes.
The Group continues to rely upon its asset-based lending (ABL) debt facility
from Leumi. The current facility is in place until October 2025 and is secured
against billed and unbilled receivables to manage both intra month and inter
month movements in working capital.
Consolidated condensed income statement
For the six months ended 30 June 2023
Six months Six months Year
to 30.06.23 to 30.06.22 to 31.12.22
(Unaudited)
(Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000
£'000 £'000
Notes
Revenue 3 17,634 21,054 40,648
Contractor costs (16,378) (19,137) (37,184)
Net fee income 1,256 1,917 3,464
Other operating income - - 950
Operating costs (1,702) (1,839) (5,443)
Operating (loss)/profit (446) 78 (1,029)
Analysed as:
Underlying operating (loss)/profit before non-underlying items (446) 101 (4)
Non-underlying costs 4 - (23) (1,975)
Non-underlying income 4 - - 950
Operating (loss)/profit (446) 78 (1,029)
Finance costs 5 (203) (160) (310)
Loss before tax (649) (82) (1,339)
Analysed as:
Adjusted loss before tax(1) (649) (59) (314)
Non-underlying costs 4 - (23) (1,975)
Non-underlying income 4 - - 950
Loss before tax (649) (82) (1,339)
Tax charge 6 (459) (213) (376)
Loss for the period attributable to owners of the parent (1,108) (295) (1,715)
Loss per share (1.07p) (0.29p) (1.66p)
Basic 7 (1.07p) (0.29p) (1.66p)
Diluted 7
All activities comprise continuing operations.
(1) Adjusted loss before tax is a non-IFRS alternative performance measure,
defined in Note 1 of the notes to the interim results.
Consolidated condensed statement of comprehensive income
For the six months ended 30 June 2023
Six months Six months Year
to 30.06.23 to 30.06.22 to 31.12.22
(Unaudited)
(Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000
£'000 £'000
Loss for the period (1,108) (295) (1,715)
Other comprehensive income
Items that will never be reclassified to profit or loss
Remeasurement of defined benefit pension scheme (569) (783) (841)
Deferred taxation on remeasurement of defined benefit pension scheme 199 274 290
Other comprehensive income for the period after tax (370) (509) (551)
Total comprehensive income for the period attributable to owners of the parent (1,478) (804) (2,266)
Consolidated condensed statement of changes in equity
For the six months ended 30 June 2023
Six months to 30.06.23 (Unaudited)
Share Share Capital redemption reserve Other Retained Total
capital premium £'000 reserves earnings £'000
£'000 reserve £'000 £'000
£'000
At 1 January 2023 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (79,400) 4,811
Share options - value of employee services - - - - 21 21
Transactions with owners - - - - 21 21
Loss for the period - - - - (1,108) (1,108)
Other comprehensive income for the period - - - - (370) (370)
At 30 June 2023 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (80,857) 3,354
Six months to 30.06.22 (Unaudited)
Share Share Capital redemption reserve Other Retained Total
capital premium £'000 reserves earnings £'000
£'000 reserve £'000 £'000
£'000
At 1 January 2022 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (77,184) 7,027
Share options - value of employee services - - - - 20 20
Transactions with owners - - - - 20 20
Loss for the period - - - - (295) (295)
Other comprehensive income for the period - - - - (509) (509)
At 30 June 2022 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (77,968) 6,243
Year to 31.12.22 (Audited)
Share Share Capital redemption reserve Other Retained Total
capital premium £'000 reserves earnings £'000
£'000 reserve £'000 £'000
£'000
At 1 January 2022 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (77,184) 7,027
Share options - value of employee services 50 50
Transactions with owners - - - - 50 50
Loss for the year - - - - (1,715) (1,715)
Other comprehensive income for the year - - - - (551) (551)
At 31 December 2022 2,062 33,270 14,319 34,560 (79,400) 4,811
Consolidated condensed statement of financial position
As at 30 June 2023
Notes As at As at As at
30.06.23 30.06.22 31.12.22
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000 £'000 £'000
Assets
Non-current assets
Goodwill 2,642 4,594 2,642
Other intangible assets 157 136 188
Property, plant and equipment 7 13 10
Right-of-use assets 88 97 174
Deferred tax assets 260 557 521
Retirement benefit asset 8 769 1,243 1,269
Total non-current assets 3,923 6,640 4,804
Current assets
Trade and other receivables 3,750 7,803 5,909
Cash and cash equivalents 512 150 2,053
Total current assets 4,262 7,953 7,962
Total assets 8,185 14,593 12,766
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Loans and borrowings (1,169) (4,657) (4,356)
Lease liabilities (96) (173) (203)
Trade and other payables (3,555) (3,478) (3,340)
Total current liabilities (4,820) (8,308) (7,899)
Non-current liabilities
Lease liabilities - - (14)
Provisions (11) (42) (42)
Total non-current liabilities (11) (42) (56)
Total liabilities (4,831) (8,350) (7,955)
Net assets 3,354 6,243 4,811
Shareholders' equity
Called up share capital 2,062 2,062 2,062
Share premium account 33,270 33,270 33,270
Capital redemption reserve 14,319 14,319 14,319
Other reserves 34,560 34,560 34,560
Retained earnings (80,857) (77,968) (79,400)
Total shareholders' equity 3,354 6,243 4,811
Consolidated condensed statement of cash flows
For the six months ended 30 June 2023
Six months Six months Year
to 30.06.23 to 30.06.22 to 31.12.22
(Unaudited)
(Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000
Notes £'000 £'000
Operating activities
Loss for the period (1,108) (295) (1,715)
Adjustments for:
Net finance expense 5 203 160 310
Share-based payment expense 21 20 50
Income tax charge 6 459 213 376
Amortisation of intangible assets 31 - 3
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment 3 7 10
Depreciation and impairment of right-to-use assets 86 177 346
Impairment of goodwill - - 1,952
(305) 282 1,332
Working capital movements
Decrease/(increase) in trade and other receivables 2,159 (3,036) (1,112)
Increase/(decrease) in trade and other payables 215 (130) (343)
Decrease in provisions (31) - -
Payments to retirement benefit plan 8 (176) (166) (331)
Net cash flow from/(used in) operating activities 1,862 (3,050) (454)
Investing activities
Purchase of property, plant and equipment - (4) (5)
Development of intangible assets - (54) (109)
Net cash flow used in investing activities - (58) (114)
Financing activities
Drawdown/(repayment) of finance facility (3,187) 2,377 2,077
Principal repayment of lease liabilities (121) (190) (433)
Interest paid 5 (95) (50) (144)
Net cash (used in)/from financing activities (3,403) 2,137 1,500
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents (1,541) (971) 932
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period 2,053 1,121 1,121
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 512 150 2,053
Notes to the interim results
1 Accounting policies
Basis of preparation
The condensed interim financial statements comprise the unaudited results for
the six months to 30 June 2023 and 30 June 2022 and the audited results for
the year ended 31 December 2022. The financial information for the year ended
31 December 2022 herein does not constitute the full statutory accounts for
that period. The 2022 Annual Report and Accounts have been filed with the
Registrar of Companies. The Independent Auditor's Report on the Annual Report
and Financial Statements for 2022 was unqualified, did not draw attention to
any matters by way of emphasis and did not contain a statement under 498(2) or
498(3) of the Companies Act 2006.
The condensed financial statements have been prepared using the recognition
and measurement requirements of UK adopted international accounting standards
(IFRS) in a manner consistent with the accounting policies set out in the
Group financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022.
The condensed financial statements for the period ended 30 June 2023 have been
prepared in accordance with IAS 34 'Interim Financial Reporting'. The
information in these condensed financial statements does not include all the
information and disclosures made in the annual financial statements.
Going concern
The interim financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis.
The Directors have reviewed the Group's cash flow forecasts for the period to
30 September 2024 and have considered possible changes in trading performance
including a further reduction in contractor numbers.
The Group continues to rely upon its asset-based lending (ABL) debt facility
from Leumi to manage its short-term cash requirements. This facility is in
place until October 2025 and requires the Group to meet two covenant tests on
a monthly basis; a positive three-month rolling EBITDA; and a positive
headroom of at least £400,000.
The twelve-month cashflow forecast to 30 September 2024 indicates that the
Group can continue to meet the three-month rolling EBITDA covenant but will
need to raise additional funds to meet the headroom covenant from January
2024. The Directors are actively discussing a number of funding options and
based on progress to date, believe that the Group will be able to secure
sufficient funds to continue to meet its headroom covenant over the next
twelve months.
Whilst acknowledging that there is material uncertainty regarding the Group's
funding position, the Directors remain confident of securing the additional
funds required and consider it appropriate to prepare the unaudited interim
financial information on a going concern basis.
Financial instruments
Unless otherwise indicated, the carrying amounts of the Group's financial
assets and liabilities are a reasonable approximation of their fair values.
Alternative performance measures
In the reporting of its financial performance, the Group uses certain measures
that are not defined under IFRS, the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
("GAAP") under which the Group reports. The Directors believe that these
non-GAAP measures assist with the understanding of the performance of the
business. These non-GAAP measures are not a substitute, or superior to, any
IFRS measures of performance but they have been included as the Directors
consider them to be an important means of comparing performance across periods
and they include key measures used within the business for assessing
performance.
Net fee income
Net fee income represents revenue less cost of sales and consist of the margin
earned on the placement of contractors, the fees earned on permanent
recruitment and the revenue less the cost of third-party contractors for
managed service and consultancy work.
NFI margin is the net fee income expressed as a percentage of revenue.
Both net fee income and NFI margin are metrics commonly used by businesses
delivering recruitment services to measure the element of revenue that is
attributable to the recruitment-based services that the Group provides to
clients.
The Directors consider that net fee income and NFI margin are important
measurements used by the Board to evaluate the performance of the Group.
Non-underlying items
The presentation of the alternative performance measures of adjusted EBITDA,
adjusted operating (loss)/profit and adjusted loss before tax excludes
non-underlying items. The Directors consider that an underlying profit measure
better illustrates the underlying performance of the Group and allows a more
meaningful comparison of performance across periods. Items are classified as
non-underlying by nature of their magnitude, incidence or unpredictable nature
and their separate identification results in a calculation of an underlying
profit measure that is consistent with that reviewed by the Board in their
monitoring of the performance of the Group. Events which may give rise to the
classification of items as non-underlying include gains or losses on the
disposal of a business, the proceeds from the sale of assets outside of normal
trading activities, restructuring of a business, transaction costs, litigation
and similar settlements, asset impairments and onerous contracts.
Adjusted EBITDA
Operating profit before non-underlying items and before the deduction of
depreciation, amortisation changes and shared based payments. This is
considered a useful measure, commonly accepted and widely used when evaluating
business performance and used by the Directors to evaluate performance of the
Group and its subsidiaries.
Adjusted EBITDA
Six months Six months Year
to 30.06.23 to 30.06.22 to 31.12.22
(Unaudited)
(Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000
£'000 £'000
Operating (loss)/profit (446) 78 (1,029)
Add back:
Adjustment for amortisation & depreciation 120 184 360
Adjustment for goodwill impairment - - 1,952
EBITDA (326) 262 1,283
Adjustment for share based payment charge 21 20 50
Add back Non-underlying items:
Income from trademark sale - - (950)
Non-underlying costs - 23 23
Adjusted EBITDA (305) 305 406
Net debt
Net debt is the amount of bank debt less available cash balances and is
regarded as a useful measure of the level of external debt utilised by the
Group to fund its operations. Net debt is presented on a pre-IFRS 16 basis
which excludes lease liabilities.
Accounting policies: new standards, amendments and interpretations
At the date of authorisation of these interim financial statements, several
new, but not yet effective, standards, amendments to existing standards and
interpretations have been published. None of these have been adopted early by
the Group. New standards, amendments and interpretations not adopted in the
current year have not been disclosed as they are not expected to have a
material impact on the Group.
2 Segmental information
The basis by which the Group is organised and its operating model is
structured, is by customer sectors, being the public sector and the private
sector. The reporting of financial information presented to the Chief
Operating Decision Maker, being the Group Board of Directors, is consistent
with these reporting segments. As these reporting segments are supported by a
combined back office, there is no allocation of overheads.
Six months to 30.06.23 (Unaudited)
Public sector Private sector Total
£'000 £'000 £'000
Revenue 8,762 8,872 17,634
Contractor costs (8,140) (8,238) (16,378)
Net fee income 622 634 1,256
Six months to 30.06.22 (Unaudited)
Public sector Private sector Total
£'000 £'000 £'000
Revenue 12,137 8,917 21,054
Contractor costs (11,137) (8,000) (19,137)
Net fee income 1,000 917 1,917
Year to 31.12.22 (Audited)
Public sector Private sector Total
£'000 £'000 £'000
Revenue 22,616 18,032 40,648
Contractor costs (20,530) (16,654) (37,184)
Net fee income 2,086 1,378 3,464
3 Revenue
The Group's revenue disaggregated by pattern of revenue recognition is as
follows:
Six months to 30.06.23 Six months to 30.06.22 Year to 31.12.22
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
£'000 £'000 £'000
Services transferred over time 17,615 20,985 40,484
Services transferred at a point in time 19 69 164
Revenue 17,634 21,054 40,648
4 Non-underlying items
Six months to Six months to Year to
31.12.22
30.06.23 30.06.22
(Audited)
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) £'000
£'000 £'000
Restructuring
- Costs related to employees - 23 23
- Goodwill impairment - - 1,952
- Income from sale and licence back of Parity trademark - - (950)
Total non-underlying items - 23 1,025
Items are classified as non-underlying by nature of their magnitude, incidence
or unpredictable nature and their separate identification results in a
calculation of an underlying profit measure that is consistent with that
reviewed by the Board in their monitoring of the performance of the Group.
5 Finance costs
Six months to Six months to Year to
31.12.22
30.06.23 30.06.22
(Audited)
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) £'000
£'000 £'000
Interest expense on financial liabilities 94 50 143
Interest expense on lease liabilities 2 4 9
Interest income on lease assets - (1) (2)
Net finance costs in respect of post-retirement benefits 107 107 160
203 160 310
The interest expense on financial liabilities represents interest paid on the
Group's asset-based financing facilities.
6 Taxation
Six months to Six months to Year to
31.12.22
30.06.23 30.06.22
(Audited)
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) £'000
£'000 £'000
Recognised in the income statement
Current tax charge - - 75
Deferred tax charge 459 213 301
Total tax charge 459 213 376
Recognised in other comprehensive income
Deferred tax credit (199) (274) (290)
7 Earnings per ordinary share
Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the basic earnings for the
period by the weighted average number of fully paid ordinary shares in issue
during the period. Diluted earnings per share is calculated on the same
basis as the basic earnings per share with a further adjustment to the
weighted average number of fully paid ordinary shares to reflect the effect of
all dilutive potential ordinary shares.
Six months to 30.06.23 Six months to 30.06.22 Year to 31.12.22
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
Weighted Weighted Weighted
average number of average number of average number of
shares Loss shares Loss shares Loss
Loss 000's per share Loss 000's per share Loss 000's per share
£'000 Pence £'000 Pence £'000 Pence
Basic loss per share (1,108) 103,076 (1.07) (295) 103,076 (0.29) (1,715) 103,076 (1.66)
Effect of dilutive options - - - - - - - - -
Diluted loss per share (1,108) 103,076 (1.07) (295) 103,076 (0.29) (1,715) 103,076 (1.66)
As at 30 June 2023, the number of ordinary shares in issue was 103,075,633 (30
June 2022: 103,075,633 and 31 December 2021: 103,075,633). There were
8,000,000 unexercised share options which did not have any dilutive impact (30
June 2022: 8,010,000 and 31 December 2022: 8,010,000).
8 Pension commitments
The Group operates a small number of pension schemes. With the exception of
the Parity Group Retirement Benefits Plan, all of the schemes are defined
contribution plans and the assets are held in separately administered funds.
The details of the Parity Group Retirement Benefits Plan are disclosed in the
2022 Annual Report and Accounts. At the interim reporting date, the major
assumptions used in assessing the defined benefit pension scheme liability
have been reviewed and updated based on a roll-forward of the last formal
actuarial valuation, which was carried out as at April 2021.
The following principal estimates have been applied in the valuation of the
pension scheme assets and liabilities in accordance with the measurement
requirements of IAS 19:
30.06.23 30.06.22 31.12.22
Rate of increase in pensions in payment 3.7-4.0% 3.7-4.0% 3.6-3.9%
Discount rate 5.2% 3.8% 4.8%
Retail price inflation 3.3% 3.4% 3.2%
Consumer price inflation 2.3% 2.4% 2.2%
The net pension scheme surplus has reduced by £500,000 since 31 December
2022.
9 Related party transactions
Transactions between the parent company and its subsidiaries, which are
related parties, have been eliminated on consolidation and are therefore not
disclosed.
In 2021, the Group engaged the marketing services of CRM Squad. The Executive
Chairman Mark Braund is an owner and director of CRM Squad. The total value of
services received from CRM Squad in the six months to 30 June 2023 was
£38,000 (Six months to 30 June 2022: £31,500 and Year to 31 December 2022:
£66,530).
10 Events after the reporting period
There are no events after the reporting period not reflected in the interim
financial statements.
This announcement contains certain statements that are or may be
forward-looking with respect to the financial condition, results or operations
and business of Parity Group plc. By their nature forward-looking statements
involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on
circumstances that will occur in the future. There are a number of factors
that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from
those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors
include, but are not limited to (i) adverse changes to the current outlook for
the UK IT recruitment and solutions market, (ii) adverse changes in tax laws
and regulations, (iii) the risks associated with the introduction of new
products and services, (iv) pricing and product initiatives of competitors,
(v) changes in technology or consumer demand, (vi) the termination or delay of
key contracts and (vii) volatility in financial markets.
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