Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Barrett Business Services (BBSI) reached a new 52-week high of $46.53, indicating strong market performance with a recent trading volume of 217,006 shares.
• The company reported earnings of ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, and showed a 10.1% revenue increase year-over-year.
• Insider selling was noted, with COO Gerald Blotz selling 13,327 shares, equating to a 5.99% decrease in his holdings, raising potential concerns about insider confidence.

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $46.53 and last traded at $46.52, with a volume of 217006 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.70.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Barrett Business Services from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $42.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.78. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 0.99.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $292.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $285.91 million. Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 24.55% and a net margin of 4.45%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.01) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Barrett Business Services's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Barrett Business Services news, Director Anthony Meeker sold 7,380 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.14, for a total value of $310,993.20. Following the sale, the director owned 55,504 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,338,938.56. This trade represents a 11.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Gerald Blotz sold 13,327 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.71, for a total value of $569,196.17. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 209,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,930,490.16. This represents a 5.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,061 shares of company stock valued at $1,406,470 over the last 90 days. 4.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrett Business Services

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 142,607 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,945,000 after purchasing an additional 3,549 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 2nd quarter valued at $454,000. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 24,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 10,912 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dakota Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 29.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 20,309 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $847,000 after purchasing an additional 4,630 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.76% of the company's stock.

About Barrett Business Services

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.