# ManpowerGroup (MAN): Q3 profit up 89% to $34.1m, but fourth-quarter forecast falls short of analysts' average

> ManpowerGroup, the US staffing company, reported third-quarter profit of $34.1m, up 89% from $18.0m a year earlier, on sales of $4.84bn, up 4.4%…

- URL: https://centiview.com/post/manpowergroup-man-q3-profit-up-89-to-34-1m-but-q4-forecast-falls-short
- Published: 2026-10-19T15:30:00.000Z
- Sectors: Industrials
- Region: US
- Ticker: MAN
- Sentiment (opinion, not a recommendation): neutral
- Publisher: Centiview (Persie Ltd, London)
- General information only, not financial advice

ManpowerGroup, the US staffing company, reported third-quarter profit of $34.1m, up 89% from $18.0m a year earlier, on sales of $4.84bn, up 4.4%. Adjusted profit per share was $1.01, but its forecast for the fourth quarter, $1.03 to $1.13, had a midpoint slightly below analysts' $1.10, and one outlet reported the shares fell about 20% before the market opened.

## What happened

On Thursday 15 October 2026, ManpowerGroup published results for the three months to 30 September 2026. The company supplies temporary and permanent workers to employers under brands including Manpower and Experis, its professional staffing brand. It reports in US dollars under US GAAP, the standard US accounting rules, and also shows an adjusted figure that leaves out one-off items. Chair and chief executive Jonas Prising said, "Our performance to date reinforces our confidence that 2026 is an inflection point for the business." The release said sales growth was "driven by strength in Manpower, particularly in the United States", and that Experis in the US returned to growth during the quarter.

## The numbers, explained

Start with sales, which for a staffing firm means what clients are billed for the workers it places. Revenue was $4,840.0m against $4,634.4m a year earlier. Our working: 4,840.0 minus 4,634.4 is 205.6, and 205.6 divided by 4,634.4 is 4.4%. In constant currency, which restates both periods at the same exchange rates so currency moves do not distort the picture, growth was 5.2%. Gross profit, sales minus what is paid to the workers placed, was flat at $767.3m against $768.9m. That means the gross margin, the share of each sales dollar kept after those costs, fell from 16.6% (768.9 divided by 4,634.4) to 15.9% (767.3 divided by 4,840.0), a drop of about 0.7 percentage points. The company grew sales without growing gross profit.

Profit rose because costs fell. Selling and administrative expenses, the cost of running offices and support staff, dropped 2.5% from $702.3m to $685.0m. Operating profit, profit before interest and tax, rose from $66.6m to $82.3m, up $15.7m or about 24%; the operating margin went from 1.4% to 1.7% (82.3 divided by 4,840.0). Net earnings were $34.1m against $18.0m, and diluted earnings per share, profit per share allowing for any extra shares that could be issued, were $0.71 against $0.38. Those are GAAP figures. Adjusted earnings per share, which exclude restructuring costs, transformation costs, a business-sale adjustment and non-cash currency losses tied to Argentina's hyperinflation, were $1.01: $0.71 plus the $0.30 of items the company listed. The year-earlier items were $0.45, which implies about $0.83 last year (our arithmetic, not a company figure); the company says the adjusted figure rose 24% in constant currency.

By region, the United States brought in $728.8m, up 5.5% from $690.8m, and the Americas as a whole $1,246.7m, up 13.5%. In France, the largest single market in Southern Europe, sales fell 3.5% to $1,132.9m. Northern Europe swung from a $14.9m loss to a $7.5m profit. On the balance sheet, total debt fell from $1,677.1m at the end of 2025 to $1,103.4m (our sums from the short- and long-term borrowing lines)..

## Why it matters

ManpowerGroup earns money by charging clients more for a worker than it pays that worker, and by placing permanent hires for a fee. Because sales move with the number of hours employers buy, staffing companies are often watched as an early signal of hiring. Here the signal was mixed: more hours sold in the US and the rest of the Americas, an improving professional-technology business, but weak France and thin gross profit. Rivals sell similar services and report separately, so we make no claim about how they are doing.

The market reaction shows how forecasts can matter more than the quarter just ended. Finviz reported that adjusted earnings per share of $1.01 matched analysts' estimates and sales of $4.84bn were just under their $4.85bn, while the fourth-quarter forecast of $1.03 to $1.13 (a midpoint of $1.08) compared with an analyst average of $1.10. It reported the shares down 19.75% in pre-market trading; that is one outlet's figure, not a closing price. The company's forecast also assumes a 44% tax rate, a high rate, which is part of the company's forecast arithmetic; the release did not explain it.

## What to watch next

The company's forecast covers the quarter ending 31 December 2026: diluted earnings per share of $1.03 to $1.13 on a 44% effective tax rate. It did not give a revenue forecast in this release. Frankiewicz becomes chief executive on 1 January 2027. ManpowerGroup's results for the fourth quarter will show where earnings land against that range; the date was not stated in the sources we read, and the company's investor site will carry it. The company files the full quarterly report on Form 10-Q with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. We make no prediction about any of these.

- Constant currency: results restated at fixed exchange rates, so currency moves do not hide real growth.
- Gross margin: the share of sales kept after paying the direct cost of the workers placed.
- Adjusted earnings: profit with one-off items removed; the company's own measure, not part of GAAP.
- Operating unit profit: a region's profit before head-office costs and amortisation of acquired intangibles.

> **Why it matters** ManpowerGroup places temporary and permanent workers with employers worldwide, so its sales are a read on hiring. Profit rose 89% in the quarter and debt fell, but gross profit was flat, France weakened, and the next-quarter forecast came in slightly below analysts' average.

> **What we verified** Revenue $4,840.0m (+4.4%), gross profit $767.3m, operating profit $82.3m, net earnings $34.1m (+89%), GAAP EPS $0.71 vs $0.38, adjusted EPS $1.01, Q4 EPS forecast $1.03 to $1.13, US revenue $728.8m (+5.5%), total debt $1,103.4m: all read in the company's SEC Form 8-K exhibit and its own press release (same figures in both). Headline revenue, GAAP and adjusted EPS, the Q4 forecast, the US and France figures and the CEO change matched in Finviz. The analyst estimates and the 19.75% pre-market share fall come from Finviz alone and are labelled as such. Percentage changes not stated by the company (gross margin, cost-of-sales gap, debt total, regional share, implied prior adjusted EPS) are our own working.

### Sources
- [ManpowerGroup Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1, Q3 2026 results (SEC)](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0000871763/000119312526422291/man-ex99_1.htm)
- [ManpowerGroup Reports 3rd Quarter 2026 Results (company press release)](https://investor.manpowergroup.com/news-releases/news-release-details/manpowergroup-reports-3rd-quarter-2026-results)
- [ManpowerGroup shares fall nearly 20% as Q3 revenue misses forecasts and Q4 outlook disappoints (Finviz)](https://finviz.com/news/403159/manpowergroup-shares-fall-nearly-20-as-q3-revenue-misses-forecasts-and-q4-outlook-disappoints)