Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 704 Shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,790 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 0.16% of Barrett Business Services worth $1,590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in Barrett Business Services during the third quarter worth about $349,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Continental Investors Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 3rd quarter valued at about $216,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Barrett Business Services by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 705,598 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,471,000 after acquiring an additional 32,632 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Barrett Business Services by 42.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 61,332 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,300,000 after acquiring an additional 18,414 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on BBSI. StockNews.com raised Barrett Business Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their price target on Barrett Business Services from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Barrett Business Services news, Director Thomas J. Carley sold 4,584 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.24, for a total value of $189,044.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 91,628 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,778,738.72. This trade represents a 4.76 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Joseph Stephen Clabby bought 1,635 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $43.01 per share, with a total value of $70,321.35. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $487,174.27. This represents a 16.87 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Barrett Business Services Stock Down 1.3 %

Barrett Business Services stock opened at $43.38 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.89, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $41.21 and its 200 day moving average is $37.26. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.06 and a twelve month high of $44.39.

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Barrett Business Services’s payout ratio is currently 16.93%.

Barrett Business Services 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.