HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI) Stock Bumped Down to “Hold” by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of HireQuest from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. DA Davidson set a $22.00 price target on shares of HireQuest in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barrington Research set a $19.00 price target on shares of HireQuest in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.50.

HireQuest Stock Down 23.6%

NASDAQ HQI traded down $4.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $14.16. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 271,832 shares, compared to its average volume of 26,859. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $17.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.65. The firm has a market cap of $196.82 million, a P/E ratio of 26.72 and a beta of 1.26. HireQuest has a 52 week low of $7.38 and a 52 week high of $20.84.

HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 12th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $8.81 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.70 million. HireQuest had a net margin of 24.66% and a return on equity of 15.86%. On average, equities analysts expect that HireQuest will post 0.80 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HQI. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in HireQuest by 113.3% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 77,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,489,000 after buying an additional 41,353 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of HireQuest in the 2nd quarter valued at $315,000. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of HireQuest during the 2nd quarter worth about $126,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of HireQuest during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,169,000. Finally, Global Strategic Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of HireQuest during the 2nd quarter worth about $208,000. 12.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About HireQuest

HireQuest, Inc. is a staffing company that provides temporary staffing and direct-hire services through a network of franchised offices. Its services connect employers with workers for roles in areas such as construction, light industrial, skilled trades, hospitality, and office support. The company operates under several brands, including HireQuest, HireQuest Direct, Snelling, TradeCorp, and MRINetwork. Its franchise model gives local operators access to the company’s staffing services and brand platforms.