Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) Sees Strong Trading Volume Following Strong Earnings

Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU) shares saw strong trading volume on Monday following a better than expected earnings announcement. 21,102 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 50% from the previous session’s volume of 14,059 shares.The stock last traded at $24.44 and had previously closed at $25.02.

The business services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.39. Brookfield Business Partners had a return on equity of 21.76% and a net margin of 7.34%. The business had revenue of $9.23 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.33 EPS.

Brookfield Business Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.063 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. This is a positive change from Brookfield Business Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Brookfield Business Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of Brookfield Business Partners in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.40.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 1.5% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 40,726 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 608 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 90,242 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,701,000 after buying an additional 1,808 shares during the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 7.4% during the third quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 31,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 2,169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV lifted its stake in Brookfield Business Partners by 24.5% in the third quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 40,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $890,000 after acquiring an additional 7,939 shares during the period. 85.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Brookfield Business Partners Trading Down 2.3 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.24. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $22.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.50. The firm has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.45.

About Brookfield Business Partners

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.