Kelly Services Inc (KELYB) stock analysis

P/E against its history

Not enough price and earnings history to compare.

P/E against the industry

Needs positive earnings and enough profitable companies in the industry.

EV/EBITDA against its history

Needs positive EBITDA and price history.

P/B below the industry

Kelly Services's price-to-book of 0.59 is below the Personnel Supply Services median of 1.63.

Trading below fair value

The share price of $16.59 is below our fair value estimate of $25.06.

Margin of safety over 20%

The price is 33.8% below fair value, more than the 20% cushion we look for.

Revenue growing under 10% a year

Revenue grew -5.0% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.

EPS growth over 3 years

Needs positive EPS three years ago and today.

Earnings acceleration

Needs positive net income now, a year ago and five years ago.

Growing slower than the industry

Revenue grew -9.6% over the last twelve months; the Personnel Supply Services median is 0.3%.

Guidance raised

Kelly Services raised its fourth quarter underlying revenue decline outlook on Nov 6, 2025.

Gross margin slipping

Gross margin was 19.7% over the last twelve months, against 20.6% a year earlier.

Return on equity under 15%

Return on equity was -24.3% over the last twelve months and averaged -2.5% over five years; we look for 15% on both.

Return on capital under 10%

Return on invested capital was -6.6%, below the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.

Return on equity below the industry

Kelly Services's return on equity of -24.3% is below the Personnel Supply Services median of 4.6%.

Earnings over 5 years

Needs positive net income five years ago and in the latest year.

Net margin below its 5-year average

Net margin was -6.7% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -0.7%.

Net margin below the industry

Kelly Services's net margin of -6.7% is below the Personnel Supply Services median of -0.1%.

Debt level

Needs debt and equity figures.

Debt trend

Needs a balance sheet from five years ago with positive equity.

Debt coverage

Needs operating cash flow.

Interest not well covered

Operating income covers interest expense -10.2 times; we look for at least 5.

Short-term assets cover short-term debts

Current assets are 1.50 times current liabilities.

Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone

The Altman Z-score is 2.73; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.

Pays a dividend

Kelly Services paid dividends worth 1.8% of the share price over the last twelve months.

Yield below Treasuries

The 1.8% yield is below the 4.4% on a 1-year Treasury.

Yield below the top quarter

The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 4.0% or more; Kelly Services yields 1.8%.

Dividend stability

Fewer than five years of dividend history.

Earnings cover

Needs dividends paid and net income.

Covered by free cash flow

Dividends take 53.7% of free cash flow.