Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average of $30.47

Shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $30.47 and traded as high as $33.78. Barrett Business Services shares last traded at $33.32, with a volume of 151,191 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BBSI shares. StockNews.com downgraded Barrett Business Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Sidoti cut Barrett Business Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, June 5th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $35.25 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.47. The firm has a market cap of $871.98 million, a PE ratio of 18.28, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.38.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $0.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.08) by $0.08. Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 26.58% and a net margin of 4.60%. The business had revenue of $265.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 1.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.01, for a total transaction of $79,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 26,192 shares in the company, valued at $864,663.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barrett Business Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BBSI. AJOVista LLC bought a new position in Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Barrett Business Services by 12,014.3% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 848 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Barrett Business Services during the second quarter valued at approximately $134,000. Arizona State Retirement System bought a new position in Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $227,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Barrett Business Services

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.