Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. Buys New Stake in Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU)

Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 78,700 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,731,000. Brookfield Business Partners makes up approximately 1.2% of Caldwell Investment Management Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. owned about 0.11% of Brookfield Business Partners as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 29.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 117,189 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,731,000 after acquiring an additional 26,947 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 12,276.3% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 260,769 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $6,076,000 after buying an additional 258,662 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 97,584 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,274,000 after buying an additional 16,684 shares during the period. Brookfield Corp ON grew its stake in Brookfield Business Partners by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 25,602,504 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $596,538,000 after buying an additional 428,511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp raised its holdings in Brookfield Business Partners by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 773,975 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $18,145,000 after acquiring an additional 92,413 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.04% of the company's stock.

Brookfield Business Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BBU traded up $0.27 on Wednesday, hitting $22.22. 17,411 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,346. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.17. The company's 50 day moving average price is $23.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.14. Brookfield Business Partners L.P. has a one year low of $16.85 and a one year high of $26.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.50.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The business services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $1.33 earnings per share. Research 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a $0.063 dividend. This is a boost from Brookfield Business Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Brookfield Business Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 3.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Five 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, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $32.00.

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.