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

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS) was up 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 changed hands during 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

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

XPS Pensions Group Price Performance

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

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 net margin of 128.13% and a return on equity of 156.24%.

XPS Pensions Group Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other XPS Pensions Group news, insider Alan Bannatyne bought 13,033 shares of XPS Pensions Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 currently owned by corporate 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.