Barrett Business Services, Inc. $BBSI Shares Sold by Polaris Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Polaris Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Barrett Business Services by 16.3%, selling 8,100 shares and now holding 41,700 shares valued at approximately $1.74 million.
• Company insiders, including CEO Gary Kramer, have sold a total of 110,438 shares over the last 90 days, representing a significant decrease in their ownership.
• Barrett Business Services reported a 10% year-over-year revenue increase for the quarter, beating analyst expectations with earnings per share of $0.70 compared to the forecasted $0.65.

Polaris Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI - Free Report) by 16.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 41,700 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 8,100 shares during the quarter. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned 0.16% of Barrett Business Services worth $1,738,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the first quarter valued at $75,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 26.4% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,309 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the first quarter valued at $163,000. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 10.0% during the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 4,400 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $181,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Barrett Business Services

In other news, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 3,064 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.64, for a total value of $145,968.96. Following the transaction, the director owned 27,776 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,323,248.64. This trade represents a 9.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Gary Kramer sold 80,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.35, for a total transaction of $3,868,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 287,040 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,878,384. This represents a 21.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 110,438 shares of company stock valued at $5,296,983. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Barrett Business Services Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:BBSI opened at $44.89 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 22.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.96. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a 1 year low of $35.81 and a 1 year high of $49.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

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

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Barrett Business Services's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.76%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b+)" rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Barrington Research lifted their price target on Barrett Business Services from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Barrett Business Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $47.00.

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.

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