NEW YORK — Robert Half (RHI) shares fell 9.5 percent in early trading Thursday after the company reported second-quarter earnings that missed revenue expectations and issued a cautious outlook.
The staffing firm posted Q2 revenue of $1.55 billion, short of the analyst consensus estimate of $1.60 billion. Earnings per share reached $0.85, beating expectations of $0.80 on tighter cost controls.
The forward guidance drove the sell-off. Robert Half projected Q3 revenue of $1.40 billion to $1.50 billion, well below the Street's consensus of $1.58 billion. Temporary and permanent placement divisions both showed softening client activity.
CEO M. Keith Waddell pointed to cautious corporate spending on the earnings call. "Clients are delaying hiring decisions and extending search processes," Waddell said. "We see this trend impacting both our Protiviti consulting segment, which saw a 3 percent sequential revenue decline, and our core staffing operations."
Analyst downgrades followed quickly. JPMorgan cut its price target on Robert Half to $78 from $85, maintaining a "Neutral" rating, citing reduced revenue visibility and persistent economic uncertainty. Goldman Sachs reiterated its "Sell" rating, flagging increased risk of margin compression.
Robert Half specializes in placing talent in finance, technology, marketing and legal roles. Sustained high interest rates and accelerating adoption of AI tools in white-collar work add pressure to an already weakening demand environment for professional staffing.
