Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) Trading 4% Higher

Shares of Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU) traded up 4% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $17.64 and last traded at $17.64. 7,584 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 45% from the average session volume of 13,803 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.96.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Cibc World Mkts upgraded Brookfield Business Partners to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. TheStreet lowered Brookfield Business Partners from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Brookfield Business Partners from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $30.33.

Brookfield Business Partners Price Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.28. The stock has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The business services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.86 by ($0.63). Brookfield Business Partners had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 21.64%. The firm had revenue of $12.02 billion during the quarter. Research analysts expect that Brookfield Business Partners L.P. will post 4.16 EPS for the current year.

Brookfield Business Partners Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a $0.0625 dividend. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. Brookfield Business Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.92%.

Institutional Trading of Brookfield Business Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of BBU. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners in the third quarter valued at about $476,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Brookfield Business Partners during the fourth quarter worth about $618,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Brookfield Business Partners by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 50,102 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after purchasing an additional 15,344 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its holdings in Brookfield Business Partners by 19.3% during the third quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 81,371 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 13,155 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Brookfield Business Partners by 54.3% during the fourth quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 59,354 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,231,000 after purchasing an additional 20,891 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.04% of the company’s stock.

Brookfield Business Partners Company Profile

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.