Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) Given “Outperform” Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada restated their outperform rating on shares of Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a $32.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock.

BBU has been the topic of a number of other reports. 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 research note on Monday, May 6th. Cibc World Mkts raised shares of Brookfield Business Partners to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Buy and a consensus price target of $30.50.

Brookfield Business Partners Trading Up 1.9 %

BBU opened at $19.13 on Monday. Brookfield Business Partners has a twelve month low of $12.22 and a twelve month high of $23.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $19.18 and a 200-day moving average of $20.26. The stock has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a PE ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) last issued its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The business services provider reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by ($0.95). Brookfield Business Partners had a net margin of 7.08% and a return on equity of 21.64%. The firm had revenue of $11.95 billion during the quarter. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.85 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Brookfield Business Partners will post 4.16 EPS for the current year.

Brookfield Business Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.0625 per share. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Brookfield Business Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 3.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookfield Business Partners

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Brookfield Business Partners during the second quarter valued at approximately $307,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Brookfield Business Partners during the 4th quarter valued at $618,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 50,102 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after buying an additional 15,344 shares during the period. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 54.3% in the 4th quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 59,354 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,231,000 after buying an additional 20,891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Triasima Portfolio Management inc. bought a new stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners in the first quarter worth $1,405,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.04% of the company’s stock.

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.