Pay Attention To Staffing Stocks

April 4th was a tough day for staffing company stocks. Online job site Monster (MNST) was down over 13%. Construction related labor source Labor Ready (LRW) and office staff source Robert Half International (RHI) were each down over 5%.

They have mostly recovered since then, as is often the case for stocks that experience a sudden reaction to news. The five largest companies in the field (by market cap) are shown in the price chart below. [click to enlarge]

That shock reminded us of the potential value of looking at staffing agencies and executive recruitment firms as indicators of employment health in the general U.S. economy. Paying attention to these stocks can also help investors find ways to play swings in employment numbers.

Here is a table presenting the 15 largest staffing companies traded in the U.S. ranked in descending order by market capitalization (as of April 4th). They span from day labor to executive search, from temporary to permanent, from nurses, to accountants to scientists and all manner of jobs.

Disclosure: As of this writing, author does not own any listed stock.