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

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS) shot up 11.1% during trading on Saturday . The company traded as high as GBX 397 ($4.99) and last traded at GBX 385.45 ($4.85). 3,388,795 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 125% from the average session volume of 1,504,858 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 347 ($4.37).

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on XPS. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 435 ($5.47) price target on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 401 ($5.04) price target on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Shore Capital reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, XPS Pensions Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of GBX 356.50 ($4.48).

XPS Pensions Group Stock Performance

The stock 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 current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.51. The business has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 343.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of GBX 331.31.

XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 disclosed 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. This represents a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 9th. XPS Pensions Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other XPS Pensions Group news, insider Alan Bannatyne purchased 13,033 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 349 ($4.39) per share, with a total value of £45,485.17 ($57,221.25). 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.