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

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS - Get Free Report) shot up 11.1% on Saturday . The stock traded as high as GBX 397 ($5.00) and last traded at GBX 385.45 ($4.85). 3,388,795 shares traded hands 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).

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on XPS. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 401 ($5.05) target price on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 435 ($5.47) target price on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Shore Capital reissued a "hold" rating on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a report 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of GBX 356.50 ($4.49).

XPS Pensions Group Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of £838.38 million, a PE ratio of 3.26 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 fifty day moving average of GBX 346.62 and a 200 day moving average of GBX 332.88.

XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS - Get Free Report) 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 company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 8.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Alan Bannatyne purchased 13,033 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 349 ($4.39) per share, for a total transaction of £45,485.17 ($57,235.65). 5.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.