HQI
HireQuest, Inc.
HQI's fundamentals are strong: its operating margin rose 22 points to 28% and earnings per share more than tripled, though free cash flow fell 45%. Its PE isn't a useful guide right now because of how its recent earnings were reported.
HQI Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Stable | |
| Strong | |
| Healthy | |
| Strong |
HQI's profitability, cash flow and balance sheet are currently healthy, and its revenue is stable.
HQI PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 20x | $11.33 | -39% |
| Forward | 24x | $18.53 | — |
| Fair | 25x | $14.52 | -22% |
| Current | 35x | $18.53 | — |
| Expensive | 41x | $23.29 | +26% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
HQI's PE is 35x, but its earnings don't support one, so it isn't a reliable read right now.
HQI Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Strongly improving | |
| Strong growth | |
| Growth | |
| Strongly improving | |
| Limited | |
| High |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for HQI, with profitability improving.
HQI Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $0.77 | +36% |
| Q2 2026 | $0.57 | +235% |
| Q1 2026 | $0.46 | +92% |
| Q4 2025 | $0.45 | +73% |
| Q3 2025 | $0.49 | +345% |
| Q2 2025 | $0.17 | -55% |
| Q1 2025 | $0.24 | -37% |
| Q4 2024 | $0.26 | -42% |
| Q3 2024 | $0.11 | -83% |
HQI's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $0.57 over the past year, against $1.06 in early 2023.
HQI Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $8.1M | +6% |
| Q1 2026 | $6.5M | -13% |
| Q4 2025 | $7M | -13% |
| Q3 2025 | $8.5M | -9.8% |
| Q2 2025 | $7.6M | -12% |
| Q1 2025 | $7.5M | -11% |
| Q4 2024 | $8.1M | -17% |
| Q3 2024 | $9.4M | +1.6% |
HQI's revenue is recovering but still below its 2023 peak: $8M last quarter, up 6% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 41% | +28 points |
| Q1 2026 | 23% | +2.8 points |
| Q4 2025 | 19% | -9.4 points |
| Q3 2025 | 29% | +57 points |
| Q2 2025 | 14% | -17 points |
| Q1 2025 | 20% | -5.1 points |
| Q4 2024 | 28% | +3 points |
| Q3 2024 | -29% | -53 points |
HQI's operating margin was 41% last quarter, up 28 points from the same quarter a year ago.
HQI Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $1.6M | -37% |
| Q1 2026 | $250K | -86% |
| Q4 2025 | $6.6M | -23% |
| Q3 2025 | $1M | -75% |
| Q2 2025 | $2.5M | +1255% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.8M | +$2.8M |
| Q4 2024 | $8.6M | -2.8% |
| Q3 2024 | $4.2M | +107% |
HQI still generates free cash flow, though less than at its 2021 peak: $9M over the past year.
HQI Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.6% | -86K shares |
| 1 year | -1.3% | -180K shares |
| 3 years | -0.1% | -7K shares |
| 5 years | -0.4% | -53.9K shares |
| Available history | +6.8% | +882K shares |
HQI has 14M diluted shares, down 1.3% from a year ago.
| Quarter | Spent |
|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | $570,000 |
| Q1 2026 | $1.9M |
| Q4 2021 | — |
| Q4 2020 | — |
| Q4 2019 | — |
| Q3 2019 | $8.2M |
HQI Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q1 2026 | -0.1x | Net Cash |
| Q4 2025 | -0.4x | Net Cash |
| Q3 2025 | 0.1x | Very low |
| Q2 2025 | 0.3x | Very low |
| Q1 2025 | 0.5x | Very low |
| Q4 2024 | 0.6x | Very low |
| Q3 2024 | 1.6x | Healthy |
HQI has more cash than debt.
HQI Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 62.9 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 58.2 | Neutral |
HQI's weekly RSI is 63 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 58 (neutral).
HQI PE vs Industrials Sector
| Metric | HQI | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 35x | 24x | 45% above |
| PE % | 75 | 58 | 17 pts above |
HQI is trading at 35x earnings, a 45% premium to the Industrials sector's median of 24x, though its earnings don't support one.
HQI Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $17.8 | 4% above |
| 20 week MA | $15.9 | 16% above |
| 50 week MA | $13.0 | 42% above |
| 100 week MA | $12.0 | 55% above |
| 200 week MA | $14.4 | 29% above |
HQI has climbed back above all five of its weekly moving averages, and it's now 29% above its 200-week average.
HQI Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $6.99 | $9.10 | +30% |
| 2021 | $9.10 | $20.4 | +124% |
| 2022 | $20.4 | $17.0 | -17% |
| 2023 | $17.0 | $15.4 | -9.5% |
| 2024 | $15.4 | $13.7 | -11% |
| 2025 | $13.7 | $10.4 | -24% |
| 2026 YTD | $10.4 | $18.5 | +78% |
HQI has finished four years in a row lower, and it's up 78% so far in 2026.