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

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

Barrett Business Services Price Performance

Shares of BBSI stock opened at $42.80 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 22.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.41. Barrett Business Services has a 1-year low of $27.06 and a 1-year high of $44.97. The company has a 50-day moving average of $43.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.20.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BBSI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Barrett Business Services in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on 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, StockNews.com raised shares of Barrett Business Services from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th.

Insider Transactions at Barrett Business Services

In related news, Director Joseph Stephen Clabby purchased 1,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $43.01 per share, for a total transaction of $70,321.35. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $487,174.27. The trade was a 16.87 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Thomas B. Cusick sold 3,000 shares of Barrett Business Services stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was 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 directly owns 27,776 shares in the company, valued at $1,205,756.16. This represents a 9.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 236.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,834,452 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $68,810,000 after buying an additional 1,289,147 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Barrett Business Services by 4.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 705,598 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,471,000 after acquiring an additional 32,632 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Barrett Business Services by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 546,510 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $20,500,000 after purchasing an additional 88,350 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans acquired a new position in shares of Barrett Business Services during the 3rd quarter worth $16,422,000. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 180,995 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $6,789,000 after purchasing an additional 1,735 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.76% of the company’s stock.

Barrett Business Services Company Profile

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.