Will Kelly Services (KELYA) Make a Suitable Value Pick?

Value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment. After all, who wouldn’t want to find stocks that are either flying under the radar and are compelling buys, or offer up tantalizing discounts when compared to fair value?

One way to find these companies is by looking at several key metrics and financial ratios, many of which are crucial in the value stock selection process. Let’s put Kelly Services, Inc. KELYA stock into this equation and find out if it is a good choice for value-oriented investors right now, or if investors subscribing to this methodology should look elsewhere for top picks.

PE Ratio

A key metric that value investors always look at is the Price to Earnings Ratio, or PE for short. This shows us how much investors are willing to pay for each dollar of earnings in a given stock, and is easily one of the most popular financial ratios in the world. The best use of the PE ratio is to compare the stock’s current PE ratio with: a) where this ratio has been in the past; b) how it compares to the average for the industry/sector; and c) how it compares to the market as a whole.

On this front, Kelly Services has a trailing twelve months PE ratio of 11.76, as you can see in the chart below:

This level actually compares pretty favorably with the market at large, as the PE for the S&P 500 compares in at about 19.72. If we focus on the stock’s long-term PE trend, the current level puts Kelly Services’ current PE ratio below its midpoint over the past five years. Moreover, the current level is fairly below the highs for this stock, suggesting it might be a good entry point.

Further, the stock’s PE also compares favorably with its industry’s trailing twelve months PE ratio, which stands at 16.20. At the very least, this indicates that the stock is relatively undervalued right now, compared to its peers.

We should also point out that Kelly Services has a forward PE ratio (price relative to this year’s earnings) of 12.35, so it is fair to expect a slight increase in the company’s share price in the near future.

P/S Ratio

Another key metric to note is the Price/Sales ratio. This approach compares a given stock’s price to its total sales, where a lower reading is generally considered better. Some people like this metric more than other value-focused ones because it looks at sales, something that is far harder to manipulate with accounting tricks than earnings.

Right now, Kelly Services has a P/S ratio of 0.16. This is lower than the S&P 500 average, which comes in at 3.10 right now.

If anything, this suggests some level of undervalued trading—at least compared to historical norms.

Broad Value Outlook

In aggregate, Kelly Services currently has a Zacks Value Style Score of ‘A’, putting it into the top 20% of all stocks we cover from this look. This makes Kelly Services a solid choice for value investors, and some of its other key metrics make this pretty clear too.

For example, the P/B ratio for Kelly Services is 0.76, a level that is lower than the industry average of 2.29. Additionally, its P/CF ratio (another great indicator of value) comes in at 10.73, which is better than the industry average of 11.56. Clearly, Kelly Services is a solid choice on the value front from multiple angles.

What About the Stock Overall?

Though Kelly Services might be a good choice for value investors, there are plenty of other factors to consider before investing in this name. In particular, it is worth noting that the company has a Growth grade of ‘A’ and a Momentum score of ‘A’. This gives Kelly Services a Zacks VGM score—or its overarching fundamental grade—of ‘A’. (You can read more about the Zacks Style Scores here >>)

Meanwhile, the company’s recent earnings estimates have been mixed at best. The current quarter has seen no upward estimate revision in the past sixty days, compared to one downward, while the current year estimate has seen one upward and no downward revisions in the same time frame.

As a result, the current quarter consensus estimate has decreased by 39.2% in the past two months, while the current year estimate has increased 0.6%. You can see the consensus estimate trend and recent price action for the stock in the chart below:

Kelly Services, Inc. Price and Consensus

This somewhat mixed trend is why the stock has just a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) and why we are looking for in-line performance from the company in the near term.

Bottom Line

Kelly Services is an inspired choice for value investors, as it is hard to beat its incredible lineup of statistics on this front. . However, a sluggish industry rank (bottom 26% out of more than 250 industries), a Zacks Rank #3, makes it hard to get too excited about this company overall. Again, over the last two years, the industry to which it belongs has clearly underperformed the broader market, as you can see below:

So, value investors might want to wait for analyst sentiments and broader factors to turn around in this name first, but once that happens, this stock could be a compelling pick.

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