Short Interest in Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) Drops By 5.9%

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 295,500 shares, a decrease of 5.9% from the June 15th total of 313,900 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 148,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

Shares of BBSI stock traded down $0.01 on Wednesday, hitting $34.72. The stock had a trading volume of 48,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 135,333. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $32.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.55. Barrett Business Services has a 1 year low of $21.59 and a 1 year high of $34.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $908.62 million, a P/E ratio of 19.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.38.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $0.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.08. Barrett Business Services had a return on equity of 26.58% and a net margin of 4.60%. The company had revenue of $265.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.03 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services will post 1.99 EPS for the current year.

Barrett Business Services Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.46%.

Insider Activity at Barrett Business Services

In other Barrett Business Services news, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.01, for a total value of $79,230.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $864,663.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BBSI. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Barrett Business Services by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 175,006 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $15,793,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC purchased a new position in Barrett Business Services in the fourth quarter worth approximately $233,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services in the 4th quarter valued at $450,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the fourth quarter worth $2,399,000. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on BBSI shares. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $35.25 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. StockNews.com cut shares of Barrett Business Services from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Sidoti lowered shares of Barrett Business Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, June 5th.

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.