UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 10-Q
[X] Quarterly Report Under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934
For the quarterly period ended December 31, 2000
or
[ ] Transition Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
For the transition period from __________ to __________
Commission File Number: 1-5707
GENERAL EMPLOYMENT ENTERPRISES, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Illinois 36-6097429
(State or other jurisdiction of (I.R.S. Employer
incorporation or organization) Identification Number)
One Tower Lane, Suite 2100, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois 60181
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(630) 954-0400
(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)
Not Applicable
(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed
since last report)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all
reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the
Securities Exchange Act during the preceding 12 months (or for
such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such
reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements
for the past 90 days.
Yes X No __
The number of shares outstanding of the issuer's common stock as
of January 31, 2001 was 5,086,656.
PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1. Financial Statements.
GENERAL EMPLOYMENT ENTERPRISES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET (Unaudited)
December 31 September 30
(In Thousands) 2000 2000
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and equivalents $ 8,096 $ 7,236
Short-term investments 3,475 5,470
Accounts receivable, less allowances
(Dec. 2000 --$439; Sept. 2000 --$512) 4,330 4,430
Total current assets 15,901 17,136
Property and equipment:
Furniture, fixtures and equipment 6,360 6,058
Accumulated depreciation (3,382) (3,215)
Net property and equipment 2,978 2,843
Total assets $18,879 $19,979
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Dividends payable $ 1,272 $ 1,272
Accrued compensation and payroll taxes 2,692 3,769
Other current liabilities 624 795
Total current liabilities 4,588 5,836
Shareholders' equity:
Common stock, no-par value; authorized --
20,000 shares; issued and outstanding --
5,087 shares 51 51
Capital in excess of stated value of shares 4,569 4,569
Retained earnings 9,671 9,523
Total shareholders' equity 14,291 14,143
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity $18,879 $19,979
See notes to consolidated financial statements.
GENERAL EMPLOYMENT ENTERPRISES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF INCOME (Unaudited)
Three Months
Ended December 31
(In Thousands, Except Per Share) 2000 1999
Net revenues:
Placement services $5,564 $5,321
Contract services 3,348 4,568
Net revenues 8,912 9,889
Operating expenses:
Cost of contract services 2,148 2,972
Selling 3,458 3,213
General and administrative 3,247 2,810
Total operating expenses 8,853 8,995
Income from operations 59 894
Interest income 194 149
Income before income taxes 253 1,043
Provision for income taxes 105 420
Net income $ 148 $ 623
Net income per share:
Basic $ .03 $ .12
Diluted $ .03 $ .12
Average number of shares:
Basic 5,087 5,087
Diluted 5,113 5,122
See notes to consolidated financial statements.
GENERAL EMPLOYMENT ENTERPRISES, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS (Unaudited)
Three Months
Ended December 31
(In Thousands) 2000 1999
Operating activities:
Net income $ 148 $ 623
Depreciation and other noncurrent items 196 150
Accounts receivable 100 (225)
Accrued compensation and payroll taxes (1,077) (1,099)
Other current liabilities (171) 350
Net cash used by operating activities (804) (201)
Investing activities:
Acquisition of property and equipment (336) (425)
Maturities of short-term investments 2,000 2,800
Net cash provided by investing activities 1,664 2,375
Increase in cash and cash equivalents 860 2,174
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 7,236 5,025
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $8,096 $7,199
See notes to consolidated financial statements.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Unaudited)
Interim Financial Statements
The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements have
been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles for interim financial information and with the
instructions to Form 10-Q. Accordingly, they do not include all
of the information and footnotes required by generally accepted
accounting principles for complete financial statements. In the
opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal
recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation
have been included. This financial information should be read in
conjunction with the financial statements included in the
Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended September
30, 2000.
Cash and Short-Term Investments
The balance of cash and cash equivalents as of December 31, 1999
on the consolidated statement of cash flows has been adjusted to
include $3,282,000 of securities previously classified as short-
term investments.
Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations.
The Company provides placement and contract staffing services for
business and industry, specializing in the placement of
professional information technology, engineering and accounting
professionals. As of December 31, 2000, the Company operated 42
offices located in major metropolitan business centers in 14
states.
A summary of operating data, expressed as a percentage of
consolidated net revenues, is presented below.
Three Months
Ended December 31
2000 1999
Net revenues:
Placement services 62.4% 53.8%
Contract services 37.6 46.2
Net revenues 100.0 100.0
Operating expenses:
Cost of contract services 24.1 30.1
Selling 38.8 32.5
General and administrative 36.4 28.4
Total operating expenses 99.3 91.0
Income from operations 0.7% 9.0%
First Quarter Results of Operations
Net Revenues
For the three months ended December 31, 2000, consolidated net
revenues were down $977,000 (10%) from the same period last year.
This was due to the combination of a $243,000 (5%) increase in
placement service revenues and a $1,220,000 (27%) decrease in
contract service revenues. Placement services represented 62.4%
of consolidated net revenues for the period, and contract
services represented 37.6% of the total.
Placement service revenues increased because of an 8% increase in
the average placement fee, while the number of placements was
down slightly from the prior year. The decrease in contract
service revenues was the result of a 26% decline in billable
hours.
The Company experienced sequential declines in contract service
revenues over the previous several quarters, and management
believes that this trend is associated with a general slowdown in
the U.S. economy that particularly affected the information
technology sector. There was also a shift in customer staffing
patterns from contract work to full-time placements during that
period of time.
It is uncertain how long these trends might last, but management
expects them to continue in the near future. Because of this,
the Company broadened the scope of its placement services from
information technology specialties to include emphasis on the
placement of accounting and engineering professionals.
Operating Expenses
Total operating expenses for the quarter were down $142,000 (2%)
compared with the same quarter last year.
The cost of contract services was down $824,000 (28%), as a
result of the lower contract service revenues. The gross profit
margin on contract services was 35.8% this quarter, compared with
34.9% the prior year. The gross profit on contract services
declined $396,000 (25%), due to the combination of lower contract
service revenues and a slightly higher profit margin.
Selling expenses increased $245,000 (8%) this quarter, and they
represented 38.8% of consolidated net revenues, which was 6.3
points higher than the prior year. The increase in the amount of
selling expenses was primarily due to higher spending for
recruitment advertising on the Internet. Selling expenses were a
higher percentage of consolidated net revenues because of the
shift in mix of revenues toward placement services.
General and administrative expenses increased $437,000 (16%) for
the quarter, and they represented 36.4% of consolidated net
revenues. This was up 8.0 points from the same quarter last
year. Compensation in the operating division increased 32% for
the quarter, due to an increase in the number of employment
consultants, together with the effect of new consultant
compensation arrangements that place greater emphasis on fixed
compensation, while reducing commission rates, in some branch
offices. Office occupancy and operating costs increased 15% due
to higher depreciation costs associated with upgrading the
Company's computer systems and office furniture last year, and
all other general and administrative expenses were down 3%.
Income from Operations and Other Items
The combined effect of revenues declining 10% while general and
administrative expenses increased by 16% resulted in an $835,000
(93%) decrease in income from operations for the quarter.
Interest income increased $45,000 (30%) in the quarter, due to a
combination of higher funds available for investment and higher
average interest rates.
The effective income tax rate was 41.5% in this quarter, up
slightly from the 40.3% rate the prior year.
As a result, net income for the quarter was down $475,000 (76%)
from the prior year.
Financial Condition
As of December 31, 2000, the Company had cash and short-term
investments of $11,571,000. This was a decrease of $1,135,000
from September 30, 2000. Net working capital at December 31,
2000 was $11,313,000, which was an increase of $13,000 compared
with last September, and the current ratio was 3.5 to 1.
The Company's primary source of funds is from operations.
However, a seasonal reduction of accrued compensation and payroll
taxes generally results in an outflow of funds during the first
quarter of the Company's fiscal year. During the three months
ended December 31, 2000, net cash used by operating activities
was $804,000. A reduction of payroll liabilities required
$1,077,000 during the period, while all other operating
activities provided $273,000.
During the first three months of the fiscal year, the Company
spent $336,000 for the acquisition of property and equipment.
In September 2000, the Company declared a cash dividend on its
common stock of $1,272,000 ($.25 per share) that is payable in
January 2001.
All of the Company's office facilities are leased, and
information about future minimum lease payments is presented in
the notes to the consolidated financial statements contained in
the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended
September 30, 2000.
As of December 31, 2000, the Company had no debt outstanding, and
it had a $1,000,000 unused line of credit available.
Shareholders' equity at that date was $14,291,000, which
represented 76% of total assets.
Management believes that existing cash and short-term
investments, together with funds generated by operations, will be
adequate to meet the Company's anticipated operating and capital
spending needs.
Forward-Looking Statements
As a matter of policy, the Company does not provide forecasts of
future financial performance. However, the Company and its
representatives may from time to time make written or verbal
forward-looking statements, including statements contained in
press announcements, reports to shareholders and filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. All statements which address
expectations about future operating performance and cash flows,
future events and business developments, and future economic
conditions are forward-looking statements within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This
includes statements relating to business expansion plans,
expectations about revenue and earnings growth, and general
statements of optimism about the future. These statements are
based on management's then-current expectations and assumptions.
Actual outcomes could differ significantly. The Company and its
representatives do not assume any obligation to provide updated
information.
Some of the factors that could affect the Company's future
performance include, but are not limited to, general business
conditions, the demand for the Company's services, competitive
market pressures, the ability of the Company to attract and
retain qualified personnel for regular full-time placement and
contract project assignments, and the ability to attract and
retain qualified corporate and branch management.
PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
Item 6. Exhibits and Reports on Form 8-K.
The following exhibit is filed as part of this report:
No. Description of Exhibit
10 Resolution of the Board of Directors adopted November 20, 2000,
establishing a Senior Executive Bonus Pool for fiscal 2001.
The Company filed no reports on Form 8-K during the quarter.
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on
its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
GENERAL EMPLOYMENT ENTERPRISES, INC.
(Registrant)
Date: February 7, 2001 By: /s/ Herbert F. Imhoff
Herbert F. Imhoff
Chairman of the Board
and Chief Executive Officer
Date: February 7, 2001 By: /s/ Kent M. Yauch
Kent M. Yauch
Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer