Mawer Investment Management Ltd. Sells 376,701 Shares of Barrett Business Services, Inc. $BBSI

Mawer Investment Management Ltd. decreased its holdings in Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) by 30.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 853,874 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 376,701 shares during the quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in Barrett Business Services were worth $25,838,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Barrett Business Services by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 265,390 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $8,031,000 after buying an additional 18,882 shares in the last quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 4.0% in the third quarter. Riverbridge Partners LLC now owns 178,096 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,389,000 after acquiring an additional 6,891 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Barrett Business Services during the third quarter worth about $286,000. Bridge City Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Barrett Business Services by 18.3% during the third quarter. Bridge City Capital LLC now owns 97,841 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,961,000 after acquiring an additional 15,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in shares of Barrett Business Services by 69.3% during the third quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 7,490 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 3,065 shares during the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Barrington Research set a $44.00 target price on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Friday, October 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of Barrett Business Services from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Roth Capital downgraded shares of Barrett Business Services from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.00.

Barrett Business Services Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Barrett Business Services stock traded down $0.26 on Friday, reaching $30.77. 110,181 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 178,202. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $32.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $32.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $737.25 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.42, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.93. Barrett Business Services, Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.33 and a twelve month high of $42.25.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The business services provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.69. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 19.94%. The company had revenue of $334.06 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $335.89 million. Research analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 1.62 EPS for the current year.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 20th will be issued a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 20th. Barrett Business Services’s dividend payout ratio is 25.40%.

About Barrett Business Services

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ: BBSI) provides outsourced business management and staffing solutions, primarily to small and midsize businesses. Its services are designed to help clients manage workforce needs and day-to-day employment responsibilities. Through its professional employer organization model, BBSI offers services that include payroll administration, human resources support, employee benefits, workers’ compensation, and workplace safety and risk management. The company also provides recruiting and staffing services to help businesses find and place employees.