Poolia Interim Report 1 January – 31 March 2016

From the CEO – Slightly lower growth than expected 

Quarterly period January-March, continuing operations
Reported revenue, earnings, cash flow and financial ratios relate to continuing operations, and do not include Poolia UK.

• Revenue amounted to SEK 200.3 (182.2) million, an increase of 9.9%.
• Operating profit amounted to SEK 0.4 (3.5) million, with an operating margin of 0.2% (1.9%).
• Profit before tax amounted to SEK 0.4 (3.5) million.
• Profit after tax was SEK 0.0 (2.4) million.
• Earnings per share amounted to SEK 0.00 (0.14).
• Cash flow from operations for the quarter was SEK -11.4 (-0.3) million.

 Discontinued operations

• Profit/loss from discontinued operations for the period was SEK -1.4 (0.0) million.
• Cash flow for the period was SEK 0.0 (0.0) million.

From the CEO – Slightly lower growth than expected
Poolia's revenue from continuing operations amounted to SEK 200.3 million in the first quarter, an increase of SEK 18.1 million or 9.9% from the same quarter of 2015. Operating profit for the same period was SEK 0.4 (3.5) million.

The Swedish business was responsible for 72.4% of the Group's revenue in the first quarter. Poolia Sweden increased its revenue by SEK 20.6 million to SEK 145.0 million, corresponding to growth of 16.6% from the same quarter the previous year. Operating profit/loss for Poolia Sweden during the quarter was SEK -2.9 (-0.9) million. The operating margin was -2.0% (-0.8%).

Revenue for Poolia's German operations was SEK 44.0 million in the first quarter, an increase of SEK 0.3 million or 0.7%. The operating margin fell to 7.6% (8.5%) during the period.

Revenue for Poolia's Finnish operations was SEK 11.3 million during the quarter, a decline of SEK 2.8 million or 19.8%. The operating margin fell to 0.0% (5.2%). Earnings improvement measures have been implemented and are expected to produce effects during the year.

Cash flow from operating activities for the period was SEK -11.4 (-0.3) million and was primarily attributable to an increase in current receivables. The Group's liquidity and financial position are good.

The increase of just under 10% in sales for the first quarter was positive, of course, and is a result of the increased focus on marketing and sales in the Company during the last year. During the quarter, Poolia Sweden continued to win tendering processes, gaining new clients, and to renew contracts. These included the Swedish Higher Education Authority, SEB, the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Ragnsells, the Swedish Pensions Agency, Bravida and Empower. We also won new business in Germany. Although growth during the quarter did not fully meet our expectations, it is clearly a step in the right direction towards our long-term goals.

Initiatives, particularly in sales and marketing, and growth that was slightly below expectations resulted in weak earnings for the period. We shall continue our efforts to streamline and realign the business.

Poolia Sweden incurred restructuring costs of SEK 2.9 (3.3) million during the quarter.

I continue to have a very positive view of Poolia’s future. With the organisational changes we have made, we are well-equipped to continue our growth journey and achieve good profitability. Poolia's long-term goals and strategies stand firm.

Contact person:
Morten Werner, MD and CEO, tel: +46 70 636 25 25, +46 8 555 650 60

This information has been published pursuant to the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. This English version was released for publication at 15.35 on 2 May 2016.

Poolia’s business concept is to provide companies and organisations with the skills that, either temporarily or permanently, meet their needs for qualified professionals. Poolia specialise in temporary staffing and permanent placement of professional staff in our focus areas of Finance & Accounting, Financial Services, Office Support, IT, Life Science & Engineering, Sales and Marketing, Human Resources, Legal, and Executive Search. Poolia has business in Sweden, Finland and Germany. Poolia is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm AB since 1999.

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