Royal Bank of Canada Sells 91,397 Shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. $BBSI

Key Points

• Royal Bank of Canada slashed its Barrett Business Services stake by 93.8%, selling 91,397 shares and retaining 6,090 shares valued at approximately $178,000. Institutional investors collectively own 86.76% of BBSI.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but leans positive: BBSI has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a $41.00 average price target, while recent opinions ranged from “Strong Sell” to “Outperform.”
• BBSI recently missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $0.52 in EPS and $319.27 million in revenue. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.08 per share, representing a 0.9% yield.

Royal Bank of Canada cut its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI - Free Report) by 93.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,090 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 91,397 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada's holdings in Barrett Business Services were worth $178,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in Barrett Business Services during the first quarter worth $8,316,000. Trigran Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 62.3% in the 4th quarter. Trigran Investments Inc. now owns 648,738 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $23,491,000 after purchasing an additional 249,052 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in Barrett Business Services by 31.6% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 870,863 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $31,534,000 after purchasing an additional 208,865 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new stake in Barrett Business Services in the 2nd quarter worth $5,536,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 821,560 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $29,749,000 after purchasing an additional 109,069 shares during the period. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research lowered Barrett Business Services from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barrington Research set a $44.00 price target on Barrett Business Services in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Roth Capital downgraded Barrett Business Services from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $38.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Barrett Business Services from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Barrett Business Services presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $41.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Barrett Business Services

In other Barrett Business Services news, Director Anthony Meeker sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.85, for a total value of $454,200.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 44,945 shares in the company, valued at $1,701,168.25. This represents a 21.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP James R. Potts sold 3,490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.00, for a total value of $132,620.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 32,035 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,217,330. This represents a 9.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,779 shares of company stock worth $786,233. 4.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Barrett Business Services Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of BBSI opened at $34.37 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.59. The stock has a market cap of $833.13 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.94. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a 12 month low of $25.33 and a 12 month high of $49.65.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.04). Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 2.77% and a return on equity of 20.95%. The company had revenue of $319.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $321.55 million. Equities research analysts expect that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 1.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Barrett Business Services's payout ratio is currently 23.53%.

About Barrett Business Services

Barrett Business Services, Inc NASDAQ: BBSI is a professional employer organization (PEO) headquartered in Northridge, California. Founded in 1971 by Barrett K. Levesque, the company provides comprehensive human resources outsourcing solutions to small and mid-sized businesses. Through its consultative model, Barrett Business Services helps clients streamline administrative processes, mitigate regulatory risk and focus on core operations.

The company's core offerings include payroll administration, employee benefits management, workers' compensation and risk management services.

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