First Trust Advisors LP Buys Shares of 6,851 Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI)

First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 6,851 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $298,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 42.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 61,332 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,300,000 after acquiring an additional 18,414 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in Barrett Business Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $349,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Barrett Business Services by 1.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 42,790 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,590,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Barrett Business Services by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,402 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $626,000 after purchasing an additional 2,265 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in Barrett Business Services during the 4th quarter worth approximately $481,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on BBSI. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. StockNews.com raised Barrett Business Services from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th.

Barrett Business Services Stock Performance

Shares of BBSI traded up $0.56 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $42.15. 80,717 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 141,022. The company has a market cap of $1.08 billion, a PE ratio of 22.21, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.02. The firm's 50 day moving average is $40.47 and its 200-day moving average is $41.50. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.68 and a 52 week high of $44.97.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The business services provider reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by $0.09. The business had revenue of $292.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $285.91 million. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 4.55% and a return on equity of 25.28%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.01) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. Barrett Business Services's payout ratio is 16.41%.

Barrett Business Services 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.