Delphi Group Plc, the London-based information technology recruitment agency and consultancy business, saw its shares crash by 15% on Tuesday, making it the second biggest looser of the day on the London Stock Exchange. The fall was prompted by year-end figures that were disappointing after a buoyant third quarter, and further exaggerated by an expectant hike in the stock price prior to the full year’s announcement on Monday. Delphi’s net profits for the year to December 31 were down 3.9% at 8.3m pounds on turnover that rose 31.5% to 276.9m pounds. Earnings per share fell 13% to 28.8 pence with the shares in issue being diluted by 10% in the year. Profits were held back by a 1.3m pound exceptional charge related to Delphi’s postponed listing on Nasdaq which the company says will not now happen until the latter half of 1998. The company said the US float was still key to its ambitions in North America which it eagerly describes as the largest market in the world for Delphi’s services, but with no date fixed, it could realistically be much later than the post-April time scale hinted at, and the 1.3m pounds of associated costs have had to be written off in 1997. Delphi’s UK business is now 63% of group revenues with the US accounting for 31% (against 22% last year). The dividend for the year was up 20% to 7.2 pence.
