Wall Street Zen Upgrades HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded HireQuest to “strong-buy” from “buy.” MarketBeat’s analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $19.00.
• HireQuest reported quarterly EPS of $0.23, beating estimates of $0.13, while revenue of $8.10 million exceeded the $7.10 million consensus forecast.
• The stock opened at $16.18, down 2.0%, with a market capitalization of approximately $224.9 million. Institutional investors own about 12% of the company, including new stakes acquired by BlackRock and NewEdge Wealth.

HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on HQI. DA Davidson upped their target price on HireQuest from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barrington Research set a $19.00 price target on HireQuest in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised HireQuest from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $19.00.

HireQuest Trading Down 2.0%

NASDAQ HQI opened at $16.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $224.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.39 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50 day moving average of $17.29 and a 200-day moving average of $14.18. HireQuest has a 1-year low of $7.38 and a 1-year high of $20.84.

HireQuest (NASDAQ:HQI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.10. HireQuest had a return on equity of 16.35% and a net margin of 27.06%. The business had revenue of $8.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.10 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that HireQuest will post 0.80 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HireQuest

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of HireQuest during the second quarter valued at about $3,381,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of HireQuest in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,169,000. Ancora Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of HireQuest in the second quarter valued at approximately $315,000. RMR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of HireQuest by 20.3% in the first quarter. RMR Capital Management LLC now owns 29,614 shares of the company's stock valued at $296,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the period. Finally, Global Strategic Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in HireQuest in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $208,000. 12.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

HireQuest Company Profile

HireQuest, Inc NASDAQ: HQI is a franchisor of staffing and workforce-solutions businesses. Through its network of independently owned and operated offices, the company supports the placement of temporary and permanent employees across a range of industries, including construction, light industrial, manufacturing, hospitality, logistics, office services and healthcare.

HireQuest's brands include HireQuest, HireQuest Direct and Snelling, among others. Its staffing offices typically recruit, screen and place workers with client companies, while providing services such as payroll administration, workforce coordination and other employment-related support.

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