Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $15.19 and last traded at $14.9540, with a volume of 28267 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.33.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on KELYA. Zacks Research raised Kelly Services from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Kelly Services from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Kelly Services in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kelly Services has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.00.

Kelly Services Stock Up 7.1%

The stock has a market cap of $532.07 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.02, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The business services provider reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.07 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.02 billion. Kelly Services had a positive return on equity of 3.07% and a negative net margin of 6.44%. As a group, analysts expect that Kelly Services, Inc. will post 1.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kelly Services Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Kelly Services’s payout ratio is -3.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Vanessa Peterson Williams sold 29,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.78, for a total value of $293,390.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 82,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $805,431.90. This represents a 26.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 5.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kelly Services

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP raised its position in Kelly Services by 173.2% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,970 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,249 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co bought a new stake in Kelly Services during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Kelly Services during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Kelly Services by 83.5% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,324 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,967 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Kelly Services by 284.2% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,220 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 5,341 shares in the last quarter. 76.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kelly Services Company Profile

Kelly Services, Inc is a global workforce solutions provider specializing in talent acquisition and staffing services across a wide range of industries. The company offers temporary staffing, permanent placement, outsourcing solutions, and consulting services to help organizations address their workforce needs. Its service offerings are designed to support clients in areas such as administrative support, information technology, engineering, science, education, healthcare, and industrial sectors.

Founded in 1946 by William Russell Kelly, Kelly Services has grown from a small local staffing firm into an international organization.