Short Interest in Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) Declines By 68.3%

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) was the target of a large decline in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 542,300 shares, a decline of 68.3% from the December 15th total of 1,710,000 shares. Approximately 1.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 575,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.9 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Barrington Research dropped their price objective on Kelly Services from $29.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 18th.

Kelly Services Trading Up 4.5 %

KELYA traded up $0.59 during trading on Monday, reaching $13.84. 449,481 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 430,769. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $14.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $492.84 million, a PE ratio of 12.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.12. Kelly Services has a fifty-two week low of $12.68 and a fifty-two week high of $25.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 1.61.

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The business services provider reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.23). Kelly Services had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 0.97%. The company had revenue of $1.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Kelly Services will post 1.93 EPS for the current year.

Kelly Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 4th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 20th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 20th. Kelly Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.09%.

Insider Transactions at Kelly Services

In related news, SVP Daniel H. Malan bought 3,500 shares of Kelly Services stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.88 per share, for a total transaction of $48,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 95,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,331,175.28. This trade represents a 3.79 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 3.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kelly Services

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kelly Services by 3,062.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,330 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 9,035 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Kelly Services by 367.1% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,396 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,883 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Kelly Services by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,362 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 1,905 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kelly Services by 238.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 63,638 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after buying an additional 44,811 shares during the period. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kelly Services during the third quarter worth $243,000. Institutional investors own 76.34% of the company’s stock.

Kelly Services Company Profile

Kelly Services, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides workforce solutions to various industries. The company operates through five segments: Professional & Industrial; Science, Engineering & Technology; Education; Outsourcing & Consulting; and International. The Professional & Industrial segment delivers staffing, outcome-based, and permanent placement services providing administrative, accounting, and finance; light industrial; contact center staffing; and other workforce solutions.