Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Director Thomas J. Carley Sells 12,646 Shares

Key Points

• Thomas J. Carley, a director at Barrett Business Services, sold 12,646 shares at an average price of $47.62, totaling over $602,000, reducing his ownership by 11.78%.
• Barrett Business Services reported a quarterly EPS of $0.70, exceeding analyst estimates and reflecting a 10% year-over-year revenue growth to $307.70 million.
• The company declared a $0.08 quarterly dividend with a yield of 0.7%, marking an annualized dividend payout ratio of 15.76%.

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI - Get Free Report) Director Thomas J. Carley sold 12,646 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.62, for a total value of $602,202.52. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 94,692 shares in the company, valued at $4,509,233.04. The trade was a 11.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Barrett Business Services Stock Performance

NASDAQ:BBSI traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $46.37. The company had a trading volume of 110,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 164,665. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The business's 50 day moving average price is $43.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.01. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a 1-year low of $34.43 and a 1-year high of $48.48. The firm has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.02.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $307.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $299.95 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. Barrett Business Services's payout ratio is 15.76%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrett Business Services

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new position in Barrett Business Services during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Barrett Business Services in the 1st quarter valued at about $75,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Barrett Business Services by 270.2% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,999 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,459 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position 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 worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services in the first quarter valued at approximately $163,000. 86.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Barrett Business Services from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Barrington Research raised their price objective on Barrett Business Services from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price 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.