Kelly Services Acquires Motion Recruitment Partners for $425M

By Tamara Parker • Monday, June 03 11:32 • Permanent Link

Kelly, a leading global specialty talent solutions provider, has completed the acquisition of Motion Recruitment Partners, LLC (MRP) from Littlejohn & Co., LLC for a purchase price of $425 million. The acquisition is expected to accelerate EBITDA margin expansion and strengthen Kelly's staffing and consulting solutions across technology, telecommunications, and government specialties in North America, as well as recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) solutions globally.

The acquisition of MRP aligns well with Kelly's strategy to enhance revenue growth potential and drive continued EBITDA margin expansion, as MRP's margin profile is commensurate with a highly specialized technology talent solutions provider. MRP's capabilities are seen as excellent complements to Kelly's offerings in becoming a leading technology staffing and consulting solutions provider in North America.

Furthermore, Kelly funded the transaction through debt and available capital, including the rapid redeployment of more than $100 million from the sale of Kelly’s European staffing operations in January 2024.

In terms of financial reporting, Kelly will host a live webcast of a conference call with financial analysts on June 18, 2024, to provide more details about the acquisition of MRP. During the webcast, Peter Quigley, President and CEO, and Olivier Thirot, Executive Vice President and CFO, will present insights into MRP’s financial profile, including recent revenue, gross margin, and net margin trends.

This acquisition marks a significant step forward for Kelly in sharpening its focus on higher-margin, higher-growth specialty outcome-based and staffing services in North America, and global RPO and MSP solutions. As a result of these announcements, the company's shares have moved 1.8% on the market, and are now trading at a price of $22.14. For the full picture, make sure to review Kelly Services's 8-K report.

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