STHREE PLC (Reuters) - British recruiting firm SThree Plc (>> SThree Plc) said on Friday adjusted full-year pretax profit was expected to slightly exceed market consensus, helped by strength in Continental Europe and the energy-market linked business in the United States.
The adjusted pretax profit consensus is 43.8 million pounds for the year ended on Nov. 30, with a forecast range of 42 million pounds to 45.6 million pounds, SThree said.
Gross profit at the energy-market linked business surged 25 percent for the year, at constant currency, while life sciences profit rose 7 percent, the company said.
"As well as a solid performance from Life Sciences and Engineering, the quarter saw an extremely strong contribution from the energy business," Liberum analysts wrote in a note. The brokerage rates the stock "buy".
"The latter was supported by a recovery in oil & gas prices, which disproportionately helped the U.S. business."
SThree, which places people with financial, energy, banking and pharmaceutical companies, said group gross profit for the year rose 4 percent at constant currency.
Gross profit is a key indicator for staffing firms as it represents total fees earned from all recruitment work.
Upbeat comments from SThree follows that from peer Robert Walters Plc (>> Robert Walters PLC) which, on Tuesday, predicted annual earnings would exceed market expectations on strong trading.
Shares of SThree rose nearly 1 percent to 360 pence in London as of 0809 GMT.
(Reporting by Radhika Rukmangadhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier and Amrutha Gayathri)
