Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Analysts

Shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $41.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on BBSI shares. Barrington Research set a $44.00 target price on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Zacks Research raised Barrett Business Services from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Roth Capital lowered Barrett Business Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $38.00 in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research report on Thursday, August 6th.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

Shares of Barrett Business Services stock opened at $32.08 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $777.62 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.94. Barrett Business Services has a 12 month low of $25.33 and a 12 month high of $42.47.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.04). Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 2.77%. The business had revenue of $319.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $321.55 million. Analysts anticipate that Barrett Business Services will post 1.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.53%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Barrett Business Services in the 3rd quarter valued at $711,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Barrett Business Services by 130.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,094 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 2,888 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Barrett Business Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Waverly Advisors LLC increased its stake in Barrett Business Services by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 60,543 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,150,000 after buying an additional 350 shares during the period. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP raised its position in Barrett Business Services by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 36,377 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,292,000 after buying an additional 1,741 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Barrett Business Services

Barrett Business Services, Inc (NASDAQ:BBSI) is a provider of business management and workforce solutions for small and midsize businesses in the United States. The company combines professional employer organization (PEO) services with staffing and management consulting to help clients manage employment-related responsibilities and day-to-day operations.

Its services include payroll administration, human resources support, employee benefits administration, risk management, workers’ compensation management, and regulatory compliance assistance.