Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI – Get Rating) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 118,100 shares, an increase of 23.1{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} from the May 31st total of 95,900 shares. Approximately 1.7{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 49,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.4 days.

In other Barrett Business Services news, CEO Gary Kramer bought 1,000 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $70.13 per share, for a total transaction of $70,130.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 34,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,416,048.63. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 3.00{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter valued at $458,000. Euclidean Technologies Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter valued at $2,050,000. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 5.6{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} during the fourth quarter. Grandeur Peak Global Advisors LLC now owns 137,292 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $9,481,000 after purchasing an additional 7,220 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Strs Ohio increased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 9.8{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 10,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. 81.74{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NASDAQ BBSI traded up $0.67 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $73.54. The company had a trading volume of 1,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 52,205. Barrett Business Services has a fifty-two week low of $57.76 and a fifty-two week high of $86.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $70.46. The firm has a market cap of $538.31 million, a P/E ratio of 13.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.39.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 4th. The business services provider reported $0.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.63) by $0.67. Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 21.43{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550} and a net margin of 4.37{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550}. The firm had revenue of $1.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.60) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Barrett Business Services will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 20th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550}. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 19th. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.28{ac23b82de22bd478cde2a3afa9e55fd5f696f5668b46466ac4c8be2ee1b69550}.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on BBSI. StockNews.com cut Barrett Business Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 13th. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Thursday, May 5th. Sidoti restated a “buy” rating and set a $97.00 price objective on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Tuesday, June 14th. Barrington Research raised their price objective on Barrett Business Services from $85.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 5th. Finally, TheStreet cut Barrett Business Services from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $102.33.

About Barrett Business Services (Get Rating)

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.

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