Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU) shares saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 23,888 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 59% from the previous session’s volume of 15,070 shares.The stock last traded at $22.30 and had previously closed at $22.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BBU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Brookfield Business Partners in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Brookfield Business Partners currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $32.33.

Brookfield Business Partners Stock Down 1.3 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -45.10 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $23.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.11.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $1.33. Brookfield Business Partners had a return on equity of 5.09% and a net margin of 2.20%. Sell-side analysts expect that Brookfield Business Partners L.P. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Brookfield Business Partners Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Brookfield Business Partners’s payout ratio is -51.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookfield Business Partners

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its position in Brookfield Business Partners by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 773,975 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,145,000 after purchasing an additional 92,413 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 29.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 117,189 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,731,000 after buying an additional 26,947 shares during the period. Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $1,731,000. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 14.2% in the third quarter. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 1,518,892 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $35,528,000 after acquiring an additional 188,743 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 834,512 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,193,000 after purchasing an additional 66,786 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.04% of the company’s stock.

About Brookfield Business Partners

Brookfield Business Partners L.P. is a private equity firm specializing in acquisition. The firm typically invests in business services, infrastructure services, construction, energy, and industrials sector. It prefers to take majority stake in companies. The firm seeks returns of at least 15% on its investments.