PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3

For Immediate Release
February 12, 2021

PERSOL HOLDINGS CO., LTD. (TSE 2181)
Consolidated Financial Results for the Nine Months
Ended December 31, 2020
PERSOL HOLDINGS CO., LTD. (the Company) today announced its consolidated financial results forthe nine months ended December 31, 2020.
Consolidated Operating Highlights
1) Financial Results(In millions of yen, unless otherwise stated)
Nine months ended December 31,
2019
2020
% change721,160
703,838-2.4
28,40322,308-21.5
41,35835,119-15.1
28,74824,701-14.1-654
12,817-2.81
55.52
95.80
81.61
-14.8

Net sales
Operating profit
EBITDA1
Ordinary profit
Net profit2
Net profit per share (yen)Adjusted EPS3 (yen)Notes:

1. EBITDA=operating profit + depreciation + amortization of goodwill
2. Net profit attributable to owners of parent company
3. Adjusted EPS=adjusted profita/ (average number of shares during the period - number of treasury stock during the period)a.

Adjusted profit=net profit attributable to owners of parent company ± adjustment itemsb (excluding non-controlling interests) ±tax reconciliation related to certain adjustment itemsb.

Adjustment items=amortization of intangible assets except goodwill by acquisitions ± extraordinary income/losses2) Balance Sheet Data
(In million yen, unless otherwise stated)
As of March 31, 2020

As of December 31, 2020

Total assets

370,993363,170

Net assets

163,906

168,705

Equity ratio

39.9%

41.6%

147,850

151,148(Reference) Equity capital3) Dividend Status(In yen, unless otherwise stated)
Annual Dividend
End of 1Q

End of 2Q

End of 3Q

End of FY

FY ended Mar. 2020

-15.00-FY ending Mar. 2021-

13.00

-

FY ending Mar. 2021 (Forecast)

TOTAL

15.00

30.00

13.00

26.00

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q34) Consolidated Financial Forecast for the Fiscal Year Ending March 2021
(In millions of yen, unless otherwise stated)
FY2020 (full year)% change

Net sales

940,000-3.1

Operating profit

25,000-36.0

EBITDA41,700-

Ordinary profit

27,000-31.4

Net profit1

14,50090.5

Net profit per share (yen)

63.17

-

Adjusted EPS (yen)98.66-Note:
1.

Net profit attributable to owners of parent company

Disclaimer
The statements concerning the Company's future business performances in this material such as earnings forecasts are basedon information currently available and certain assumptions deemed to be reasonable by the Company, and do not mean that
the Company promises to achieve these figures. Actual results may differ materially from the statements due to a variety offactors.

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3

Management Discussion and Analysis(1) Result of Operations
PERSOL GROUP (the Group) provides a wide range of human resources (HR) related services;
temporary staffing and placement service as the core in Japan and Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.
In the nine months ended December 31, 2020, deterioration of business circumstances due tothe effect of COVID-19 pandemic began to be controlled and the ratio of job offers to job seekers
in Japan bottomed out in September last year and slightly recovered to 1.06 (seasonallyadjusted) in December. Since late December, however, COVID-19 infection spread in the urban
area mainly in Tokyo and the emergency declaration was issued again at the beginning of 2021,
so the economic concerns are still existing.
Due to the concerns about future prospect caused by spreading COVID-19, the placementbusiness suffered the effect of companies continuous cautious for hiring. Additionally, looking atAPAC region where we operate business and the situation of COVID-19 varied depending on thearea, the whole APAC region was affected by COVID-19 and furthermore, Australian dollar
became weaker against Japanese yen in this period of nine months ended in December 31,
2020 (corresponding to a period from January to September 2020 for overseas subsidiaries).
In these severe business environment, total sales amount was JPY 703,838 million (decreasedby 2.4% year-on-year) as a result of significant decreased sales due to COVID-19, andterminated “ an ” business in Career SBU, although Staffing SBU, our core business, andProfessional Outsourcing SBU increased in sales. In terms of profit, operating profit was JPY
22,308 million (decreased by 21.5 % YoY) because of a recording operating loss in Career SBU
that operates highly profitable placement business due to COVID-19 although Staffing SBU
recorded an increased profit. Ordinary profit was JPY 24,701 million (decreased by 14.1% YoY)
and net profit attributable to owners of parent company was JPY 12,817 million (net loss of JPY
654 million for the same period of previous year mainly due to impairment loss of goodwill).
Results by SBU (before inter-segment elimination)*Note that the classification of segments for report was changed from the first quarter of FY2020
and the comparative analysis shown below was made in comparison of the restated figures inthe same period of the previous year of new segments after re-classification.

1. Staffing SBU
In this segment, the Group operates temporary staffing business, including mainstay clericaland administrative staff dispatching and wide range of staffing service, BPO (Business ProcessOutsourcing) business and job referral service business mainly for administrative talents inJapan.
Sales for the nine months ended in December 31, 2020 were JPY 394,369 million (increased by4.0% YoY) and operating profit was JPY 24,670 million (increased by 37.3% YoY).
Sales were increased in temporary staffing business as a result of an increase of operating daysby 1 from the same period of the previous year and increased unit billing rates in accordancewith “equal pay for equal work” although the number of active temporary staffs decreased YoY
because new temporary staffing demand decreased on account of concerns about future
prospect due to spreading COVID-19. In BPO business, sales were also increased as a result ofobtaining outsourcing business projects in various areas including those related to COVID-19.

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3

Operating profit increased as a result of the effect of increased sales in temporary staffingbusiness and BPO business.

2. Career SBU
In this segment, the Group operates placement business, supporting corporate client mid-career
hiring activities, and job recruitment media business.
Sales were JPY 43,310 million (decreased by 32.2% YoY) and operating loss was JPY 328 million(operating profit was JPY 10,367 million for the same period of the previous year).
Sales were decreased because companies were continuously restraining from recruitment due
to concerns about future prospect because of spreading COVID-19 in placement business, and“an” business was terminated (in November 2019). On the profit side, operating loss recorded
due to decreased sales despite the efforts to reduce marketing cost and personal expenses due
to reallocation of employees.

3. Professional Outsourcing SBU
In this segment, the Group operates manufacture and development outsourcing business in IT
and engineering areas and temporary staffing business specialized in engineers dispatching.
Sales were JPY 82,377 million (increased by 7.0% YoY) and operating profit was JPY 2,471
million (decreased by 23.7% YoY).
Sales as a whole were increased due to the fact that business in IT areas was continuously
strong demand although sales continued to decline in engineering area due to reduction of R&D
budget in the manufacturing companies. Operating profit was decreased as a result of increasedlabor costs-to-sales ratio due to increased number of staffs and non-active engineers occurredin engineering area.

4. Solution SBU
In this segment, the Group provides digital solution services for hiring talents and humanresource management, and creates new businesses through incubation program.
Sales were JPY 3,783 million (decreased by 25.0% YoY) and operating loss was JPY 3,793
million (operating loss was JPY 851 million for the same period of the previous year).
Sales were decreased as a result of a continued tendency of companies to reduce recruitment
costs and deteriorated business circumstances surrounding restaurants both due to the effectof COVID-19. On the profit side, operating loss was recorded due to sales decreased and as aresult of ongoing investments including increase of headcount.

5. Asia Pacific SBU
In this segment, the Group operates temporary staffing business and placement business in
APAC area and human resource-related business and maintenance business in Australia (thosebusinesses are operated under PERSOLKELLY brand in Asia and under PROGRAMMED brand inAustralia).
Sales were JPY 186,789 million (decreased by 7.9% YoY) and operating loss was JPY 980 million(operating loss of JPY 859 million for the same period of the previous year).
Sales were decreased because most of APAC region suffered economic slump due to spread of
COVID-19 while Singapore showed a growth of staffing business and China was recovering
placement business for the third quarter. Weaker Australian dollar against Japanese yen was

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3

another factor of decreased sales. On the profit side, despite the effort of reducing personnel
and other costs, operating loss was recorded due to the effects of spreading COVID-19 which
resulted in decreased sales of profitable placement business in the APAC region, and decreased
demand for blue collar staffing with deteriorated business confidence and temporary lockdown
in Australia.

The business impacts caused by spreading COVID-19 infection
In Japan, deterioration of business confidence caused by COVID-19 began to be controlled, but
the disease started spreading in the urban area mainly in Tokyo from late December 2020 andthe emergency declaration was issued again on January 7, 2021. Currently, economic outlook
is increasingly unpredictable. In most regions in APAC, including Singapore and China, theeconomy is largely on a recovery trend.
Regarding the Group’s businesses in Japan, in temporary staffing business, a decrease in thenumber of active temporary staffs was small because the number of terminated contracts ofexisting temporary staffs was decreasing although new orders from companies decreased YoY
as a result of concerns about future prospect because of spreading COVID-19.

Furthermore,in BPO business, the number of new projects are increasing driven by a growing demand foroutsourcing. In placement business, the level of orders received remains at approximately 75%of the level in the same month last year because companies are continuously refraining fromhiring new workers. As for overseas business, in most regions in APAC, social activities andeconomic situation are gradually recovering after hitting bottom during a period from April toSeptember 2020. As a result, our company’s overseas business is receiving less negative effects.

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3(2) Financial Position
Consolidated Balance Sheet
Total assets decreased by JPY 7,823 million compared with the end of the previous fiscal year.
Current assets decreased by JPY 458 million, and non-current assets decreased by JPY 7,364
million. The main reason for the decrease in current assets was a decrease in notes and accounts
receivable by JPY 8,007 million despite increases in cash and deposits by JPY 3,156 million andwork in progress by JPY 1,219 million. The main reason for the decrease in non-current assets
was a decrease due to amortization of goodwill by JPY 5,270 million.
Liabilities decreased by JPY 12,622 million compared to the end of the previous fiscal year.
Current liabilities decreased by JPY 2,237 million, and non-current liabilities decreased by JPY
10,384 million. The main reasons for the decrease in current liabilities were that corporate bonds
to be redeemed within one year increased by JPY 10,000 million, however on the other hand,
long-term loans payable within one year decreased by JPY 9,969 million and provision forbonuses decreased by JPY 5,674 million. The main reason for the decrease in non-current
liabilities was a decrease in corporate bonds by JPY 10,000 million, etc.
Net assets were increased by JPY 4,799 million compared to the end of the previous fiscal year.
This was mainly caused by payment of dividends of surplus of JPY 6,485 million, and posting
JPY 12,817 million in quarterly net profit attributable to owners of parent company, etc. which
resulted in increased retained earnings of JPY 6,332 million and increased treasury shares ofJPY 1,734 million and on the other hand, foreign currency translation adjustments decreasedby JPY 1,270 million, etc.
As of March 31,
2020

As of December 31,
2020

Return on assets (ROA) for the period

2.3%

3.8%

Return on equity (ROE) for the period

5.0%

8.6%

Ratio of operating profit to sales

4.0%

3.2%

Ratio of ordinary profit to sales

4.1%

3.5%Current ratio

159.6%

161.9%

Fixed assets ratio

99.7%

92.7%

Equity ratio

39.9%

41.6%

Total assets (JPY million)

370,993363,170

Equity capital (JPY million)

147,850

151,148

Cash and cash equivalents etc. at end of period (JPY million)

78,037

81,266(3) Explanation regarding future forecast information
There is no change in the full-year consolidated financial forecast in the “Consolidated Financial
Results for the Six Months Ended September 30, 2020” announced on November 10, 2020.

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3

Consolidated Financial Statements(1) Consolidated Balance Sheet(in millions of yen)
As of December 31,2020

As of March 31,
2020
AssetsCurrent assets
Cash and deposits

78,247

81,404

Notes and accounts receivable - trade128,571

120,563

Work in process

7,618

8,837

Other

9,820

12,815

Allowance for doubtful accounts

-707

-530

223,549

223,090

Buildings and structures, net

3,675

3,560

Tools, furniture and fixtures, net

2,013

1,964

Right of use assets, net

3,904

3,722

Total current assets
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment

Land997

799Other, net

2,011

1,840

Total property, plant and equipment

12,603

11,887

Intangible assets
Trademark right

9,671

9,475

Goodwill

72,562

67,292

Other

22,34823,786

Total intangible assets

104,582

100,553

Investment securities

8,146

10,516

Deferred tax assets

9,063

4,721

Other

14,444

13,781

Allowance for doubtful accounts-1,397-1,381

Total investments and other assets

30,257

27,638

Total non-current assets

147,444

140,080

Total assets

370,993363,170

Investments and other assets

PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3(Consolidated Balance Sheet)(in millions of yen)
As of December 31,2020

As of March 31,2020
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Accounts payable - trade782

Short-term borrowings

5,300

4,184

－

10,000Current portion of bonds payable

388

Current portion of long-term borrowings

10,00031

Accounts payable - other

69,26670,207

Income taxes payable

6,755

2,348

Accrued consumption taxes

17,764

18,648Provision for bonuses

12,687

7,013

56

20

Provision for bonuses for directors (and other officers)
Other provisions

772

715

Other16,665

24,256

Total current liabilities

140,052

137,814

Bonds payable

20,00010,000Long-term borrowings

35,72835,759Lease obligations

2,456

2,141

Deferred tax liabilities

4,860

4,610

Retirement benefit liability

989

974

Provision for share-based remuneration

383

510

449

476

Non-current liabilities

Provision for share-based remuneration for directors(and other officers)
Other provisions
Other
Total non-current liabilities

7296

2,094

2,081

67,03556,650207,087

194,465

Share capital

17,47917,479

Capital surplus

20,396

19,058Retained earnings126,285

132,618

Treasury shares-9,369-11,103

154,792

158,053

Total liabilities
Net assets
Shareholders' equity

Total shareholders' equity
Accumulated other comprehensive income
Valuation difference on available-for-sale securities

471

1,779

Foreign currency translation adjustment-7,414-8,684

Total accumulated other comprehensive income-6,942-6,904

Share acquisition rights－0

Non-controlling interests

16,056

17,556

Total net assets

163,906

168,705

Total liabilities and net assets

370,993363,170PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3(2) Consolidated Income Statements and Comprehensive Income Statement(Consolidated Income Statement)(in millions of yen)
Year ended December 31,
2019

2020

Net sales

721,160

703,838

Cost of sales

561,375

555,226

Gross profit

159,785

148,612Selling, general and administrative expenses

131,381

126,304

Operating profit

28,40322,308Non-operating income
Interest income

2233

Dividend income

151

141

Subsidy income

384

2,544

Share of profit of entities accounted for using equity method

228

164

Other99

173

Total non-operating income

886

3,057

Interest expenses

389

274

Foreign exchange losses

76127

Commission expenses－146

Other75

115

Total non-operating expenses

541

664

28,74824,701Gain on sales of non-current assets

6788

Gain on sales of investment securities

33250

Gain on sale of businesses

33－

Other－

8134

347

Non-operating expenses

Ordinary profit
Extraordinary income

Total extraordinary income
Extraordinary losses
Loss on disposal of non-current assets

6－Impairment loss

12,52595

Provision of allowance for doubtful accounts

1,094－

Restructuring loss

3,144

152

Loss on valuation of shares of subsidiaries and associates
Loss on valuation of investment securities
Non-recurring loss

598－－32－597

17,368

878

Profit before income taxes

11,514

24,170

Income taxes - current

9,396

6,389

Income taxes - deferred

1,995

3,780

Total income taxes

11,392

10,170121

14,000Total extraordinary losses

ProfitProfit attributable to non-controlling interests

775

1,182

Profit (loss) attributable to owners of parent-654

12,817PERSOL HOLDINGS (TSE 2181)
FY2020 Q3(Consolidated Comprehensive Income Statement)(in millions of yen)
Nine months ended December 31,2019Profit2020
121

14,000

Other comprehensive income
Valuation difference on available-for-sale securities
Foreign currency translation adjustment
Share of other comprehensive income of entities accounted forusing equity method
Total other comprehensive income
Comprehensive income

133

1,308

-4,630-1,480-102-3-4,600-175-4,47813,824-5,00812,855529

968

Comprehensive income attributable toComprehensive income attributable to owners of parent
Comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interests