Russell Investments Group Ltd. Increases Stake in Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners L.P. (NYSE:BBU - Free Report) by 64.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,017 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,755 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.08% of Brookfield Business Partners worth $1,485,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 52.6% in the fourth quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,900 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. BBR Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield Business Partners by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 17,724 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 1,448 shares during the last quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Brookfield Business Partners by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 32,518 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 1,017 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caldwell Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Brookfield Business Partners during the fourth quarter worth $1,731,000. 85.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BBU shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Brookfield Business Partners from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Brookfield Business Partners from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th.

Brookfield Business Partners Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of BBU traded up $0.33 during trading on Thursday, reaching $21.33. 1,146 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,090. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The stock has a market cap of $1.91 billion, a PE ratio of -43.52 and a beta of 1.34. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.16. Brookfield Business Partners L.P. has a twelve month low of $16.85 and a twelve month high of $26.75.

Brookfield Business Partners (NYSE:BBU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The business services provider reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $1.33. Brookfield Business Partners had a net margin of 2.20% and a return on equity of 5.09%. On average, analysts anticipate that Brookfield Business Partners L.P. will post 5.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Brookfield Business Partners Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.0625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Brookfield Business Partners's payout ratio is currently -51.02%.

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.