Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) Short Interest Update

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,159,877 shares, a growth of 28.2% from the February 26th total of 904,803 shares. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 342,161 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher D. Layden purchased 10,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.80 per share, for a total transaction of $88,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 382,513 shares in the company, valued at $3,366,114.40. This represents a 2.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director James Christopher Hunt acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.43 per share, with a total value of $94,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 25,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $244,953.68. This trade represents a 62.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders bought 35,200 shares of company stock valued at $327,137. Company insiders own 3.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kelly Services

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JB Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in Kelly Services during the 3rd quarter worth $1,541,000. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in shares of Kelly Services by 56.7% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 90,287 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,057,000 after buying an additional 32,669 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Kelly Services in the 3rd quarter worth $1,328,000. Verus Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Kelly Services during the 3rd quarter worth $754,000. Finally, Minerva Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Kelly Services during the 2nd quarter worth $468,000. Institutional investors own 76.34% of the company’s stock.

Kelly Services Stock Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:KELYA opened at $8.85 on Wednesday. Kelly Services has a twelve month low of $7.98 and a twelve month high of $14.94. The company has a market cap of $302.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.79. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.03 billion. Kelly Services had a positive return on equity of 4.05% and a negative net margin of 5.98%. Analysts anticipate that Kelly Services will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

Kelly Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 25th were paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. Kelly Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently -4.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KELYA. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Kelly Services in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Kelly Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Barrington Research reduced their price objective on shares of Kelly Services from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kelly Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.00.

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.