Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) Short Interest Up 6.6% in December

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 643,400 shares, a growth of 6.6% from the December 15th total of 603,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 119,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BBSI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Barrett Business Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on shares of Barrett Business Services from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Barrett Business Services

In related news, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 3,000 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.41, for a total transaction of $130,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,776 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,205,756.16. This trade represents a 9.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Carley sold 4,584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.24, for a total transaction of $189,044.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 91,628 shares in the company, valued at $3,778,738.72. This trade represents a 4.76 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Truvestments Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Barrett Business Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Amalgamated Bank increased its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 300.0% during the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 936 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank bought a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

Barrett Business Services Stock Performance

Barrett Business Services stock traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $43.86. The stock had a trading volume of 127,873 shares, compared to its average volume of 92,679. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.14 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.42. Barrett Business Services has a fifty-two week low of $27.06 and a fifty-two week high of $44.97. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $42.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.35.

Barrett Business Services Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Barrett Business Services’s payout ratio is currently 16.89%.

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.