Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Barrett Business Services was downgraded from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, while Barrington Research maintained an "outperform" rating with a price target of $49.00.
• The company reported $307.7 million in revenue for its last quarter, exceeding expectations, and had a quarterly EPS of $0.70, surpassing the consensus estimate of $0.65.
• Insider trading revealed that both the COO and CEO sold substantial stock holdings, with the COO selling 11,664 shares and the CEO selling 80,000 shares, indicating a reduction in their ownership stakes.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on BBSI. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $49.00 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.00.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

NASDAQ BBSI opened at $42.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.69, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.50. Barrett Business Services has a 52-week low of $35.81 and a 52-week high of $49.65.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.05. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 4.49% and a return on equity of 24.59%. The company had revenue of $307.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $299.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Barrett Business Services will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Barrett Business Services

In other news, COO Gerald Blotz sold 11,664 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.08, for a total value of $537,477.12. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 197,432 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,097,666.56. This represents a 5.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gary Kramer sold 80,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.35, for a total transaction of $3,868,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 287,040 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,878,384. This trade represents a 21.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 110,438 shares of company stock valued at $5,296,983 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Barrett Business Services

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWC Advisors LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Barrett Business Services by 31.9% during the 1st quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 10,753 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 2,598 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in Barrett Business Services during the first quarter worth $33,000. Dakota Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services in the first quarter valued at $645,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 2.1% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 528,243 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $21,737,000 after purchasing an additional 10,627 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of Barrett Business Services by 4.1% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 21,874 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $900,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Barrett Business Services Company Profile

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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