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HireQuestHQI -4.38%82 Graham Number is $7.37 as of Jun. 2026. GuruFocus rates HQI with a GF Score™ of 82/100 and a GF Value™ of $10.85 (Significantly Overvalued). The stock has 7 warning signs investors should review. Among 705 Business Services companies, HireQuest ranks worse than 77.59% on this metric.
Graham Number is a figure that measures a stock's fundamental value by taking into account the company's earnings per share and book value per share. The Graham number is the upper bound of the price range that a defensive investor should pay for the stock. According to the theory, any stock price below the Graham number is considered undervalued, and thus worth investing in.
As of today (2026-09-07), the stock price of HireQuest is $16.14. HireQuest's graham number for the quarter that ended in Jun. 2026 was $7.37. Therefore, HireQuest's Price to Graham Number ratio for today is 2.19.
The historical rank and industry rank for HireQuest's Graham Number or its related term are showing as below:
HQI'
s Price-to-Graham-Number Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 0.9 Med: 2.33 Max: 5
Current: 2.19
During the past 13 years, the highest Price to Graham Number ratio of HireQuest was 5.00. The lowest was 0.90. And the median was 2.33.
HQI's Price-to-Graham-Number is ranked worse than 77.59% of 705
companies
in the Business Services industry
Industry Median: 1.17
vs HQI: 2.19
Graham Number is a combination of asset valuation and earnings power valuation. It is a very conservative way of valuing a stock.
Ben Graham actually did not publish a formula like this. But he wrote in The Intelligent Investor (1948 version) regarding to the criteria for purchases:
Current price should not be more than 15 times average earnings of the past three years.
Current price should not be more than 1.5 times the book value last reported. However, a multiplier of earnings below 15 could justify a correspondingly higher multiplier of assets. As a rule of thumb we suggest that the product of the multiplier times the ratio of price to book value should not exceed 22.5. (This figure corresponds to 15 times earnings and 1.5 times book value. It would admit an issue selling at only 9 times earnings and 2.5 times asset value, etc.)
Unlike valuation methods such as DCF or Discounted Earnings, the Graham number does not take growth into the valuation. Unlike the valuation methods based on book value alone, it takes into account the earnings power. Therefore, the Graham Number is a combination of asset valuation and earnings power valuation.
In general, the Graham number is a very conservative way of valuing a stock. It cannot be applied to companies with negative book values.
HireQuest's Price to Graham number Ratio for today is calculated as
Price to Graham number
=
Share Price (Today)
/
Graham number (Q: Jun. 2026 )
=
16.14
/
7.37
=
2.19
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
Be Aware
Please keep these in mind:
1. Graham Number does not take growth into account. Therefore it underestimates the values of the companies that have good earnings growth. We feel that if the earnings per share grows more than 10% a year, Graham Number underestimates the value.
2. Graham Number punishes the companies that have temporarily low earnings. Therefore, an average of earnings makes more sense in the calculation of Graham Number.
3. Graham Numbers underestimates companies that are light with book.
HireQuest Graham Number Related Terms
HireQuest Graham Number Historical Data
* Premium members only.
The historical data trend for HireQuest's Graham Number can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
For the Staffing & Employment Services subindustry, HireQuest's Price-to-Graham-Number, along with its competitors' market caps and Price-to-Graham-Number data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
HireQuest Price-to-Graham-Number vs Business Services Industry
For the Business Services industry and Industrials sector, HireQuest's Price-to-Graham-Number distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where HireQuest's Price-to-Graham-Number falls into.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
HireQuest (HQI) has a Graham Number of $7.37 as of Jun. 2026. The Graham Number values a company based on its per-share earnings and book value. View historical data on HireQuest and its competitors. According to the industry distribution chart, HireQuest ranks #547 out of 705 companies in the Business Services industry, placing it in the top 77.6%.
Is HireQuest's Graham Number too high?
HireQuest's current Graham Number is $7.37. The Business Services industry median Graham Number is 1.17. HireQuest's value of $7.37 is 529.9% above this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, HireQuest ranks #547 out of 705 companies in the Business Services industry, which is in the bottom quartile relative to peers. Overall, HireQuest has a GF Score™ of 82/100 and is considered Significantly Overvalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does HireQuest's Graham Number compare to TBI and MHH?
According to the Business Services industry distribution chart, HireQuest ranks #547 out of 705 companies for Graham Number. This places HireQuest in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Graham Number is 1.17. HireQuest's value of $7.37 is 529.9% above this benchmark. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Graham Number for a Business Services company?
The median Graham Number among Business Services companies is 1.17, based on 705 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Graham Number significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Graham Number should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. HireQuest's current Graham Number of $7.37 is 529.9% above the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Graham Number mean?
A high Graham Number can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Graham Number values a company based on its per-share earnings and book value. View historical data on HireQuest and its competitors. For the Business Services industry, the median Graham Number is 1.17 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. HireQuest's current Graham Number is $7.37. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is HireQuest stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, HireQuest (HQI) is currently considered Significantly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is $10.85, compared to a current price of $16.14 — trading 48.8% above its estimated fair value. The current Graham Number is $7.37 and 529.9% above the Business Services industry median of 1.17. HireQuest's overall GF Score™ is 82/100 with 7 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Graham Number calculated?
Graham Number is calculated from a company's financial statements. For HireQuest (HQI), the current Graham Number is $7.37 as of Jun. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Is HireQuest (HQI) Overvalued in 2026?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, HireQuest stock appears to be overvalued.
The current stock price of $16.14 is trading 48.8% above its estimated GF Value™ of $10.85.
GuruFocus considers HireQuest to be Significantly Overvalued.
Key valuation signals for HQI:
Graham Number: $7.37
GF Value™: $10.85 vs. price of $16.14 (48.8% above fair value)
Industry Position: 529.9% above the Business Services median (#547 of 705)
No single metric tells the full story. See the HQI stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.
HireQuest Inc is a nationwide franchisor of offices providing direct-dispatch, executive search, and commercial staffing solutions in the light industrial and blue-collar segments of the staffing industry and traditional commercial staffing. The company's franchisees provide various types of temporary personnel through two business models operating under the trade names HireQuest Direct, HireQuest, Snelling, DriverQuest, HireQuest Health, Northbound Executive Search, and MRI. The company's primary source of revenue is royalty fees based on the operation of its franchised offices.
82GF Score
Get the complete analysis for HQI
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