Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Stock Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $32.72 and traded as high as $34.88. Barrett Business Services shares last traded at $34.01, with a volume of 150,751 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BBSI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Barrett Business Services from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Barrett Business Services from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Barrett Business Services from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Monday, April 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.50.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $31.75 and its 200-day moving average is $32.74. The stock has a market cap of $885.63 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.96.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The business services provider reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.02. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 3.24% and a return on equity of 22.89%. The firm had revenue of $307.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $306.68 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($0.04) EPS. Barrett Business Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 1.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.78%.

Institutional Trading of Barrett Business Services

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Barrett Business Services in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 63.0% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the period. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Barrett Business Services by 152.6% in the fourth quarter. Tripletail Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,920 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barrett Business Services Company 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.