Empresaria Group (EMR) H1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Net fee income grew 5% year-over-year to £24.5m, marking the first half-year growth since 2022, with revenue stable at £117.7m.

• Adjusted operating profit rose 135% to £4.0m, driven by disciplined cost management and improved performance across all service lines.

• Specialist recruitment returned to profitability, while Global workforce solutions and Operational outsourcing delivered strong profit growth.

• Disposal of Skillhouse in April 2026 generated a £0.7m profit and improved underlying business performance.

• Board changes in October 2025 led to a return to a decentralised, multi-branded model and improved stability.

Financial highlights

• Revenue stable at £117.7m (H1 2026) vs £117.8m (H1 2025); net fee income up 5% to £24.5m.

• Adjusted operating profit increased to £4.0m from £1.7m; operating profit up to £3.9m from £0.9m.

• Adjusted profit before tax rose to £3.2m (H1 2026) from £0.9m (H1 2025); reported profit before tax was £3.1m versus £0.1m last year.

• Adjusted, diluted profit per share improved to 0.6p from a loss of 0.8p.

• Net debt stable at £17.0m as of 30 June 2026, with facilities extended to October 2027.

Outlook and guidance

• Adjusted profit before tax for the full year 2026 is now expected to be at least £6.2m, up from previous guidance of £5.2m.

• Continued focus on cost discipline, staff productivity, and sales opportunities.

• Management remains confident in delivering profitable growth despite ongoing market and geopolitical challenges.

• Ongoing review of opportunities to reduce net debt and central costs, aiming to return value to shareholders.