Contrasting Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) and HAYS (OTCMKTS:HAYPY)

Kelly Services (NASDAQ:KELYA) and HAYS (OTCMKTS:HAYPY) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Kelly Services and HAYS’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kelly Services	-0.14%	5.65%	2.72%
HAYS	N/A	N/A	N/A

Risk and Volatility

Kelly Services has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HAYS has a beta of 0.44, indicating that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

76.3% of Kelly Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.9% of Kelly Services shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Kelly Services and HAYS”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kelly Services	$4.33 billion	0.11	-$600,000.00	($0.20)	-69.35
HAYS	$8.55 billion	0.15	-$10.09 million	N/A	N/A

Kelly Services has higher earnings, but lower revenue than HAYS.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Kelly Services and HAYS, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kelly Services	0	0	1	0	3.00
HAYS	0	0	0	1	4.00

Kelly Services presently has a consensus target price of $25.00, suggesting a potential upside of 80.25%. Given Kelly Services’ higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Kelly Services is more favorable than HAYS.

Dividends

Kelly Services pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. HAYS pays an annual dividend of $0.19 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Kelly Services pays out -150.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Kelly Services beats HAYS on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. The Science, Engineering & Technology segment offers staffing, outcome-based, and permanent placement services in the areas of science and clinical research, engineering, technology, and telecommunications specialties. The Education segment provides staffing, permanent placement, and executive search services to pre-K-12 school districts and education organizations. The Outsourcing & Consulting segment offers managed service provider, recruitment process outsourcing, payroll process outsourcing, and executive coaching programs to customers on a global basis that includes its RocketPower brand. The International segment provides staffing, recruitment process outsourcing, and permanent placement services. The company serves customers in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, France, Switzerland, Portugal, Russia, Italy, rest of Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region. Kelly Services, Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Troy, Michigan.

About HAYS

Hays plc engages in the provision of recruitment services in Australia, New Zealand, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company provides qualified, professional, and skilled recruitment in permanent, temporary, and contractor formats to public and private sectors. It offers its recruitment services in the specialisms, such as technology, accountancy and finance, engineering, construction and property, office support, life sciences, sales and marketing, and others. Hays plc was founded in 1968 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.