XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) Shares Up 11.1% – Should You Buy?

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS)’s stock price rose 11.1% during mid-day trading on Saturday . The company 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).

Analyst Ratings Changes

XPS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a GBX 401 ($5.05) price target on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 435 ($5.48) price target 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 analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 356.50 ($4.49).

XPS Pensions Group Trading Up 11.1 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.52. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is GBX 343.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 331.16. The company has a market capitalization of £795.95 million, a PE ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.57.

XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The company reported GBX 9.40 ($0.12) earnings per share (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 disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors 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 is presently 8.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

About XPS Pensions Group

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.