XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) Trading 11.1% Higher – Here’s What Happened

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS)’s stock price shot up 11.1% during trading on Saturday . The company traded as high as GBX 397 ($5.00) and last traded at GBX 385.45 ($4.85). 3,388,795 shares were traded during mid-day 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).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

XPS Pensions Group Price Performance

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 company has a 50-day moving average of GBX 343.54 and a 200-day moving average of GBX 331.16. The firm has a market capitalization of £795.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.57.

XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The company reported GBX 9.40 ($0.12) EPS 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 firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were paid a GBX 3.70 ($0.05) dividend. This represents a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 9th. XPS Pensions Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at XPS Pensions Group

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