Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) shares gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $31.47, but opened at $28.30. Barrett Business Services shares last traded at $26.6690, with a volume of 148,885 shares.

Key Barrett Business Services News

Here are the key news stories impacting Barrett Business Services this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS met street expectations at $0.64 and the company showed solid profitability metrics (ROE ~24.4%, net margin ~4.5%), signaling underlying operating strength that limits downside from the print. BBSI Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a quarterly cash dividend ($0.08/share), providing a modest yield and some income support for shareholders; ex-dividend date set for March.
• Neutral Sentiment: Management emphasized record sales volume and other operational highlights on the earnings call, which could imply continued growth opportunities if trends persist. Barrett Business Services Inc (BBSI) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Sales Volume and …
• Neutral Sentiment: Full call transcript and Q&A are available for deeper color on revenue drivers and margin outlook — useful for assessing guidance and customer metrics. Barrett Business Services, Inc. (BBSI) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Some outlets flagged that reported sales missed certain analysts’ expectations (top-line perception of a miss), which likely triggered the sell-off despite EPS meeting estimates. Investors often punish revenue misses more than matched EPS. Barrett (NASDAQ:BBSI) Misses Q4 CY2025 Sales Expectations
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose meaningfully in February (to roughly 2.9% of float at one report), adding downward pressure and amplifying volatility if sentiment turns negative.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on BBSI shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Monday, December 29th. CJS Securities raised shares of Barrett Business Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of Barrett Business Services in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Barrett Business Services has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.00.

Barrett Business Services Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.86. The stock has a market cap of $670.60 million, a PE ratio of 12.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Barrett Business Services (NASDAQ:BBSI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The business services provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.64. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.43 million. Barrett Business Services had a net margin of 4.48% and a return on equity of 24.36%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Barrett Business Services, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrett Business Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. Barrett Business Services’s payout ratio is 15.38%.

Institutional Trading of Barrett Business Services

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its position in Barrett Business Services by 1.0% during the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 45,971 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,037,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Barrett Business Services by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 17,036 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of Barrett Business Services by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 49,800 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in Barrett Business Services by 63.0% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,456 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Barrett Business Services by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,219 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $626,000 after buying an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. 86.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Barrett Business Services Company Profile

Barrett Business Services, Inc (NASDAQ: BBSI) is a professional employer organization (PEO) headquartered in Northridge, California. Founded in 1971 by Barrett K. Levesque, the company provides comprehensive human resources outsourcing solutions to small and mid-sized businesses. Through its consultative model, Barrett Business Services helps clients streamline administrative processes, mitigate regulatory risk and focus on core operations.

The company’s core offerings include payroll administration, employee benefits management, workers’ compensation and risk management services.