Short Interest in Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) Increases By 28.3%

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 762,900 shares, a growth of 28.3% from the March 15th total of 594,800 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 239,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.2 days.

Kelly Services Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of KELYA traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $23.21. 118,870 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 232,944. Kelly Services has a twelve month low of $15.53 and a twelve month high of $25.27. The company has a market cap of $819.08 million, a P/E ratio of 23.68, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.18. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $23.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.37.

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The business services provider reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.38. Kelly Services had a return on equity of 6.50% and a net margin of 0.75%. The business had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.18 earnings per share. Kelly Services's revenue for the quarter was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Kelly Services will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Kelly Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 26th. Kelly Services's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kelly Services news, SVP Timothy L. Dupree sold 12,711 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.98, for a total transaction of $317,520.78. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,392 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $809,152.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Olivier Thirot sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.07, for a total transaction of $481,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 174,793 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,207,267.51. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy L. Dupree sold 12,711 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.98, for a total transaction of $317,520.78. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,392 shares of the company's stock, valued at $809,152.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Kelly Services

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KELYA. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Kelly Services by 165.0% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,054,370 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $22,870,000 after acquiring an additional 656,552 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in Kelly Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $10,485,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Kelly Services by 974.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 375,458 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,830,000 after buying an additional 340,498 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A. acquired a new position in Kelly Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $4,995,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in Kelly Services in the second quarter valued at approximately $5,531,000. 76.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Kelly Services

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.