Trigran Investments Inc. Increases Stock Position in Barrett Business Services, Inc. $BBSI

Trigran Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) by 121.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 399,686 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 219,049 shares during the quarter. Barrett Business Services makes up 3.2% of Trigran Investments Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Trigran Investments Inc. owned about 1.56% of Barrett Business Services worth $17,714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 1,388.3% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 893 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 833 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Barrett Business Services during the third quarter worth approximately $54,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new stake in Barrett Business Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 270.2% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,999 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,459 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

Barrett Business Services Trading Up 0.4%

BBSI opened at $29.22 on Friday. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.33 and a twelve month high of $49.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $736.34 million, a PE ratio of 13.98, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $35.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.13.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The business services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.64. Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 23.67% and a net margin of 4.39%.The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm decreased their target price on Barrett Business Services from $54.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Barrington Research reduced their price objective on shares of Barrett Business Services from $46.00 to $41.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. CJS Securities upgraded shares of Barrett Business Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Zacks Research cut shares of Barrett Business Services from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.50.

Barrett Business Services Profile

Barrett Business Services, Inc (NASDAQ: BBSI) is a professional employer organization (PEO) headquartered in Northridge, California. Founded in 1971 by Barrett K. Levesque, the company provides comprehensive human resources outsourcing solutions to small and mid-sized businesses. Through its consultative model, Barrett Business Services helps clients streamline administrative processes, mitigate regulatory risk and focus on core operations.

The company’s core offerings include payroll administration, employee benefits management, workers’ compensation and risk management services.