Belfast-based IT services group Kainos has reported revenue of £196.1 million for the six months to 30 September 2026, up 7% on the same period last year, but adjusted pre-tax profit fell 16% to £32 million as rising costs squeezed margins. The FTSE 250 company, one of Europe's largest Workday partners, also raised its interim dividend and announced a new £30 million share buyback programme.

The results, published on Monday 9 November, show a company growing its order book strongly while absorbing higher labour and investment costs. Kainos said bookings rose 27% to £227.9 million, a record sales period, and chief executive Brendan Mooney described it as a positive six months for the company.

Record bookings driven by Workday

Growth was led by the company's Workday business. Revenue from Workday Products rose 14% to £39.2 million, while Workday Services revenue rose 4% to £53.4 million. The number of Workday customers rose to more than 600, up from over 500 a year ago.

Kainos sells products and services built around Workday, the US software used by large employers to run finance and human resources, and also provides digital services to organisations including Diageo and NHS England. Mooney said the strong first half positions the company for accelerated growth in the second half, with each of its divisions set to increase revenue.

Higher costs cut into profit

Despite the growth in sales, adjusted pre-tax profit dropped to £32 million and the adjusted profit margin fell to 16%, from 21% a year earlier. Kainos blamed investment to support its Workday partnership, higher National Insurance costs and the use of contractors and third-party suppliers to provide short-term delivery capacity.

Cash held by the group fell to £105.5 million at the end of September, down from £151 million a year earlier, partly because of share buybacks. Kainos said it had returned £58 million to shareholders through two buyback programmes over the past 12 months.

Dividend up and new buyback

Even so, the board raised the interim dividend by 5% to 9.8p a share, payable on 12 December, and announced a third buyback programme worth £30 million, which will start when the current repurchase programme ends next week.

Kainos said it still expects full-year adjusted pre-tax profit to match current City forecasts. The results follow a trading update in October in which the company raised its expectations for the year, saying revenue and profit should come in comfortably ahead of what analysts had pencilled in.

New Belfast headquarters on the way

Kainos, founded in Belfast in 1986, is building a new global headquarters at Bankmore Square on Dublin Road in the city, with planning permission granted in April 2024 and construction now under way. The company will be the lead occupier of the new building and aims to move in during 2027.