Johannesburg - Listed IT group Paracon Holdings generated a 50 percent rise in headline earnings per share to 8.2 cents for the interim period ended March, the company said on Monday.
Turnover rose 26 percent to R382.4 million while net profit was up a massive 46 percent to R31 million.
The group said results were boosted by excellent performances across all divisions with organic growth accounting for a large portion of the company's success during the period.
"Demand for IT specialists continues unabated across all industry sectors as a result of a thriving economy that is driving business development and expansion," said chief executive officer Mark Jurgens.
He said Paracon's recent acquisitions contributed to results ahead of expectations, referring to specialist recruiter The Personnel Concept acquired in October 2006 and the group's 34.6 percent stake in India-based associate Nihilent Technologies.
The group's two divisions - Paracon Resourcing and Paracon Business Solutions - reported turnover growth ahead of budget.
Paracon Resourcing accounted for the lion's share of group turnover at 88 percent, which translated to a contribution of R334.6 million.
Paracon Business Solutions also performed well and contributed R48 million, or 12 percent, of group turnover.
Jurgens said he remained optimistic about future performance despite the scarcity of specialist ICT skills, which he acknowledged remained a challenge for the group.
He said recent acquisitions had provided Paracon with exciting channels to meet the ongoing demand and address the skills shortage.
"The Personnel Concept acquisition has exposed the group to new markets in South Africa while our Nihilent stake has enabled us to alleviate somewhat the short-term skills crisis. In addition we have our own graduate training and mentorship programmes to further develop the necessary skills.
We are therefore best placed in the industry to take advantage of demand," he said. - I-Net Bridge