XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) Trading Up 11.1% – Time to Buy?

Shares of XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS) rose 11.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as GBX 397 ($5.00) and last traded at GBX 385.45 ($4.85). Approximately 3,388,795 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 125% from the average daily volume of 1,504,858 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 347 ($4.37).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XPS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 401 ($5.05) price objective on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Shore Capital reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 435 ($5.48) price objective on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of GBX 356.50 ($4.49).

XPS Pensions Group Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of £795.95 million, a PE ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average is GBX 343.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is GBX 331.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.52.

XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The company reported GBX 9.40 ($0.12) earnings per share for the quarter. XPS Pensions Group had a return on equity of 156.24% and a net margin of 128.13%.

XPS Pensions Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a GBX 3.70 ($0.05) dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 9th. This represents a yield of 1.03%. XPS Pensions Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other XPS Pensions Group news, insider Alan Bannatyne purchased 13,033 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 349 ($4.39) per share, for a total transaction of £45,485.17 ($57,250.06). 5.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

XPS Pensions Group Company Profile

XPS Group is a leading UK consulting and administration business specialising in the pensions and insurance sectors. A FTSE 250 company, XPS combines expertise and insight with advanced technology and analytics to address the needs of over 1,400 pension schemes and their sponsoring employers on an ongoing and project basis.