Pagegroup Plc (MPGPF) Q2 2026 Earnings Call

Investor webinar replay

Replay transcript excerpt

Good morning everyone and welcome to the Page Group 2026 second quarter trading update. I'm Kelvin Stagg, Chief Financial Officer. On the call with me is Nick Kirk, Chief Executive Officer. Although I will not read it through, I'd just like to make reference to the legal formalities that are covered in the cautionary statement in the appendix to this presentation and which will also be available on our website following the call. Despite ongoing challenging market conditions, The group produced a good performance in Q2. Q2 gross profit was 197.6 million pounds, a decline of 0.2% in constant currencies. For the first half, we delivered gross profit of 385.2 million pounds, a decline of 2.4% in constant currencies. We reduced our Fiona headcount by 80, or 1.6% during Q2, mainly in France and Northern Europe. Overall, the group ended the quarter with 4,914 fee earners and a total headcount of 6,679. Despite the challenging conditions, gross profit per fee earner and measure of productivity remained high and grew 5% versus Q2 2025. In line with expectations and having paid out the 2025 final dividend of around £10 million in June, net debt at the end of June was around £7 million in line with Q1. In the first week of July the cash balance improved to be broadly net flat and we expect to close the year with around 30 to 40 million pounds of net cash. I will now give a brief financial review. We reduced the earner headcount by 80 or 1.6% during Q2, mainly in France and Northern Europe. We remain committed to our strategy and continue to reallocate resources into the areas of the business Offering the most significant long-term structural opportunities, such as in Asia. Overall, our focus remains on aligning headcounts in all of our markets to activity levels and balancing ...