Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Given New $41.00 Price Target at Barrington Research

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) had its price target increased by Barrington Research from $35.00 to $41.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Barrington Research currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on BBSI. Sidoti lowered shares of Barrett Business Services from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Barrett Business Services from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th.

Barrett Business Services Stock Down 5.6 %

Barrett Business Services stock traded down $2.00 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $33.81. 11,832 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 138,140. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.21. Barrett Business Services has a 52 week low of $21.59 and a 52 week high of $37.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $884.81 million, a PE ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.38.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.04. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 4.50% and a return on equity of 26.01%. The business had revenue of $279.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $273.13 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. Barrett Business Services’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Barrett Business Services will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. This is a positive change from Barrett Business Services’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Barrett Business Services’s payout ratio is presently 16.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Barrett Business Services

In other news, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 2,400 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.01, for a total value of $79,230.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 26,192 shares in the company, valued at $864,663.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Barrett Business Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in BBSI. AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 12,014.3% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 848 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 415.2% in the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 2,342 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 300.0% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,280 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co acquired a new position in Barrett Business Services during the second quarter worth $118,000. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barrett Business Services Company Profile

Barrett Business Services, Inc provides business management solutions for small and mid-sized companies in the United States. The company develops a management platform that integrates a knowledge-based approach from the management consulting industry with tools from the human resource outsourcing industry.