Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . 25,728 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 81% from the previous session’s volume of 14,192 shares.The stock last traded at $21.92 and had previously closed at $21.95.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BBU shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Brookfield Business Partners from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.80.

Brookfield Business Partners Trading Up 0.9 %

The company has a market cap of $1.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.50. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $23.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 8th. The business services provider reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.39. Brookfield Business Partners had a return on equity of 30.68% and a net margin of 11.77%. The firm had revenue of $9.23 billion for the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Brookfield Business Partners L.P. will post 5.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookfield Business Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.063 per share. This is an increase from Brookfield Business Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Brookfield Business Partners’s payout ratio is currently 3.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookfield Business Partners

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BBU. Intact Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Gold Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in Brookfield Business Partners by 7.4% in the third quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 31,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 2,169 shares during the period. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV boosted its position in Brookfield Business Partners by 24.5% during the third quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 40,281 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $890,000 after acquiring an additional 7,939 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 1.5% during 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 period. Finally, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners in the 4th quarter worth $1,731,000. 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.