Bank of Montreal Can Acquires 94,052 Shares of Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU)

Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU - Free Report) by 11.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 928,564 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 94,052 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned 1.25% of Brookfield Business Partners worth $21,871,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BBU. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. increased its position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 1,618,655 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $38,041,000 after purchasing an additional 99,763 shares during the period. Forge First Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Brookfield Business Partners by 48.3% in the fourth quarter. Forge First Asset Management Inc. now owns 532,964 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,538,000 after acquiring an additional 173,500 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its stake in Brookfield Business Partners by 12,276.3% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 260,769 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $6,076,000 after acquiring an additional 258,662 shares in the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners during the fourth quarter valued at $5,111,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 63.8% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 159,883 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,775,000 after purchasing an additional 62,299 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.04% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on BBU shares. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Brookfield Business Partners in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th.

Brookfield Business Partners Trading Up 3.2 %

Brookfield Business Partners stock traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $20.77. 1,909 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,087. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $23.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of -42.40 and a beta of 1.34. Brookfield Business Partners L.P. has a 52 week low of $16.85 and a 52 week high of $26.75.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $1.33. Brookfield Business Partners had a return on equity of 5.09% and a net margin of 2.20%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Brookfield Business Partners L.P. will post 5.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Brookfield Business Partners Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Brookfield Business Partners's payout ratio is -51.02%.

About Brookfield Business Partners

Brookfield Business Partners L.P. is a private equity firm specializing in acquisition. The firm typically invests in business services, infrastructure services, construction, energy, and industrials sector. It prefers to take majority stake in companies. The firm seeks returns of at least 15% on its investments.