Recruiter Hays on track for 2018 target after profit jump

By Li-mei Hoang

LONDON (Reuters) - British recruitment company Hays (HAYS.L) sees clear opportunities for further growth in the year ahead, it said on Thursday after reporting a strong advance in net fees from all of its key regions for the first time in seven years.

The company, which places workers in areas such as finance, construction and IT, said it is on track to hit its target of broadly doubling group operating profit by 2018.

Hays, which operates in 33 countries, posted a 9 percent rise in like-for-like net fees to 764.2 million pounds ($1.18 billion) in its financial year to June 30.

The UK and Ireland, which accounts for more than a third of the business, achieved net fee growth of 11 percent and Chief Executive Alistair Cox told Reuters that the company's forward momentum has continued into the new financial year.

"We've had a good start ... We are seeing double-digit growth rates across dozens of countries around the world," he said, pointing to Asia, Britain, Spain and France among others.

Recruiters such as Hays, Michael Page (MPI.L) and Robert Walters (RWA.L) are often seen as an economic bellwether because companies tend to hire more permanent staff when confidence levels rise.

Hays' permanent placements grew by 13 percent over the year, led by the UK, Australia and some parts of Europe. Temporary placements were up 7 percent.

The company also increased its own headcount by 9 percent, adding about 600 consultants.

Pretax profit rose 18 percent to 156.1 million pounds, in line with analysts expectations, despite a 9.6 million pound hit from currency effects.

Hays raised its full-year dividend by 5 percent. It said in July that it would consider paying a special dividend next year of up to 100 million pounds from an expected cash surplus after paying off its debts.

Shares in the company rose 1.9 percent to 157 pence by 0821 GMT, against a 1.3 percent gain for the mid-cap FTSE 250 index (.FTMC).

(Editing by David Goodman)