Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Barrington Research cut their price target on Kelly Services from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kelly Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Kelly Services in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.00.

Kelly Services Price Performance

KELYA stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $9.49. 49,616 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 457,761. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Kelly Services has a 1-year low of $7.98 and a 1-year high of $14.94. The company has a market cap of $324.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.30, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.80.

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by ($0.29). The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.03 billion. Kelly Services had a positive return on equity of 4.05% and a negative net margin of 5.98%. On average, analysts anticipate that Kelly Services will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director James Christopher Hunt acquired 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $9.30 per share, for a total transaction of $37,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,976 shares in the company, valued at $278,776.80. This trade represents a 15.40% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher D. Layden acquired 10,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 24th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.80 per share, with a total value of $88,880.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 382,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,366,114.40. The trade was a 2.71% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 35,200 shares of company stock valued at $327,137. 3.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Management Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Kelly Services by 101.8% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 1,268,649 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,164,000 after buying an additional 640,076 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Kelly Services by 39.9% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,908,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $16,798,000 after buying an additional 544,309 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kelly Services by 594.2% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 623,723 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,489,000 after buying an additional 533,873 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Kelly Services by 1,328.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 412,211 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,408,000 after acquiring an additional 383,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Kelly Services by 186.9% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 482,702 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,333,000 after acquiring an additional 314,447 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.34% of the company’s stock.

About Kelly Services

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.