XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) Stock Price Up 11.1% – Still a Buy?

Shares of XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS) rose 11.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as GBX 397 ($5.00) and last traded at GBX 385.45 ($4.85). Approximately 3,388,795 shares were traded 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).

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

XPS Pensions Group Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of £795.95 million, a PE ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.52, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is GBX 343.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is GBX 331.24.

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

XPS Pensions Group Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at XPS Pensions Group

In other XPS Pensions Group news, insider Alan Bannatyne acquired 13,033 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 349 ($4.39) per share, with a total value of £45,485.17 ($57,250.06). Corporate insiders own 5.14% of the company’s stock.

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.