Hays (LON:HAS) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Posted by Tristan Rich on Aug 20th, 2026

Hays (LON:HAS – Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported GBX (3.64) EPS for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Hays had a negative net margin of 0.16% and a negative return on equity of 2.24%.

Here are the key takeaways from Hays’ conference call:

Pre-exceptional operating profit rose 3% to £48.6 million despite an 8% decline in net fees to £906 million, supported by 7% productivity growth, cost reductions, and strong cash conversion.
Hays launched its Momentum strategy to focus on 16 countries, six global specialisms, higher-value roles, and three product areas, with a medium-term ambition to increase consultant net fee productivity by more than 50% and restore conversion above 25%.
The company delivered £50 million of annualized structural savings in FY2026 and targets a further £50 million in FY2027, while technology investments—including AI-enabled search and matching tools—are being rolled out to improve consultant efficiency and fill rates.
Trading remains subdued, particularly in permanent recruitment, with perm fees down 12% and volumes down 14%; July and August activity was broadly unchanged from Q4, and management said September will be a key indicator of demand trends.
Hays expects significant further exceptional restructuring costs in FY2027 as it pursues additional savings and reshapes its country portfolio, including potential impacts from exiting or reviewing operations in several European countries.

Hays Price Performance

Shares of HAS opened at GBX 67.60 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 65.55, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.27. Hays has a fifty-two week low of GBX 28.68 and a fifty-two week high of GBX 72.83. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 48.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 40.82. The company has a market capitalization of £1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -102.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 0.77.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a GBX 60 target price on shares of Hays in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Hays from GBX 90 to GBX 75 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a GBX 28 target price on shares of Hays in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a GBX 33 price target on shares of Hays in a research note on Friday, July 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hays has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of GBX 57.20.

View Our Latest Report on HAS

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joe Hurd acquired 5,672 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 35 per share, with a total value of £1,985.20. 0.81% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hays announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, June 1st that allows the company to buyback 0 shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.