Have you been paying attention to shares of Korn/Ferry (KFY)? Shares have been on the move with the stock up 8.1% over the past month. The stock hit a new 52-week high of $85.97 in the previous session. Korn/Ferry has gained 27.8% since the start of the year compared to the -8.5% gain for the Zacks Business Services sector and the 57.4% return for the Zacks Staffing Firms industry.
What's Driving the Outperformance?
The stock has an impressive record of positive earnings surprises, having beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters. In its last earnings report on June 23, 2026, Korn/Ferry reported EPS of $1.4 versus consensus estimate of $1.37 while it beat the consensus revenue estimate by 2.74%.
For the current fiscal year, Korn/Ferry is expected to post earnings of $5.75 per share on $3.03 in revenues. This represents a 8.9% change in EPS on a 4.32% change in revenues. For the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $6.33 per share on $3.21 in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 10.09% and 5.77%, respectively.
Valuation Metrics
While Korn/Ferry has moved to its 52-week high in the recent past, investors need to be asking, what is next for the company? A key aspect of this question is taking a look at valuation metrics in order to determine if the company is due for a pullback from this level.
On this front, we can look at the Zacks Style Scores, as these give investors a variety of ways to comb through stocks (beyond looking at the Zacks Rank of a security). The individual style scores for Value, Growth, Momentum and the combined VGM Score run from A through F. The idea behind the style scores is to help investors pick the most appropriate Zacks Rank stocks based on their individual investment style.
Korn/Ferry has a Value Score of A. The stock's Growth and Momentum Scores are B and F, respectively, giving the company a VGM Score of A.
In terms of its value breakdown, the stock currently trades at 14.7X current fiscal year EPS estimates, which is not in-line with the peer industry average of 18.7X. On a trailing cash flow basis, the stock currently trades at 11.5X versus its peer group's average of 14.3X. This is good enough to put the company in the top echelon of all stocks we cover from a value perspective, making Korn/Ferry an interesting choice for value investors.
Zacks Rank
We also need to look at the Zacks Rank for the stock, as this supersedes any trend on the style score front. Fortunately, Korn/Ferry currently has a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy) thanks to a solid earnings estimate revision trend.
Since we recommend that investors select stocks carrying Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and Style Scores of A or B, it looks as if Korn/Ferry fits the bill. Thus, it seems as though Korn/Ferry shares could have a bit more room to run in the near term.
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