Brandes Investment Partners LP Invests $259,000 in Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA)

Brandes Investment Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:KELYA) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 11,993 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $259,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KELYA. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Kelly Services by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,694,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,247,000 after buying an additional 22,006 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Kelly Services by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,491,736 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,135,000 after purchasing an additional 51,283 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Kelly Services by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 880,182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $16,011,000 after purchasing an additional 4,009 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in Kelly Services during the third quarter worth about $10,485,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Kelly Services by 974.0% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 375,458 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,830,000 after acquiring an additional 340,498 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.34% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kelly Services news, EVP Olivier Thirot sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.07, for a total value of $481,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 174,793 shares in the company, valued at $4,207,267.51. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Kelly Services news, SVP Timothy L. Dupree sold 12,711 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were 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 approximately $809,152.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Olivier Thirot sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.07, for a total value of $481,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 174,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,207,267.51. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Kelly Services in a report on Monday, May 13th.

Kelly Services Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KELYA traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $22.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 24,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 232,285. Kelly Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.62 and a 1 year high of $25.27. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $781.67 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.19.

Kelly Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.35%. Kelly Services’s payout ratio is 21.58%.

Kelly Services 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.