XPS Pensions Group (LON:XPS) Shares Up 7.7% – Here’s Why

XPS Pensions Group plc (LON:XPS)’s stock price traded up 7.7% during trading on Thursday. The company traded as high as GBX 337.50 and last traded at GBX 334. Approximately 10,630,944 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 414% from the average session volume of 2,068,991 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 310.

More XPS Pensions Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting XPS Pensions Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue growth and upgraded outlook: XPS reported 12% first-half revenue growth and said full-year results are expected to be slightly ahead of previous expectations. The performance reflects continued demand across its pensions advisory and administration businesses, improving confidence in earnings momentum. XPS raises full-year expectations as revenue grows 12%
• Positive Sentiment: Positive broker views: Berenberg reaffirmed its “buy” rating and set a GBX 440 price target, while Canaccord Genuity also maintained a “buy” recommendation with a GBX 469 target. The targets imply substantial potential upside from recent trading levels and reinforce the bullish interpretation of XPS’s results. Berenberg rating update
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction confirms results were well received: Multiple reports characterized the shares as gaining or jumping following the strong first-half update, suggesting investors view the revenue performance and raised expectations as evidence that XPS is executing ahead of plan. XPS Pensions shares jump following strong first-half revenue growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector policy backdrop: A pensions-industry update noted that the new UK prime minister is turning attention toward pensions. This could create opportunities or regulatory risks for advisers such as XPS, but the immediate company-specific update was overwhelmingly focused on operating performance. Quarterly Pensions Watch

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on XPS shares. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 440 price objective on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of XPS Pensions Group to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from GBX 430 to GBX 435 in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 485 target price on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 469 target price on shares of XPS Pensions Group in a research report on Thursday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of GBX 451.50.

XPS Pensions Group Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of £697.41 million, a P/E ratio of 27.70 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a fifty day moving average price of GBX 312.07 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 312.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.65, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.51.

Insider Transactions at XPS Pensions Group

In related news, insider Paul Cuff sold 319,195 shares of XPS Pensions Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 340, for a total value of £1,085,263. Also, insider Snehal Shah sold 113,801 shares of XPS Pensions Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 330, for a total transaction of £375,543.30. Insiders have sold 1,110,388 shares of company stock valued at $373,250,270 in the last 90 days. 1.03% of the stock is currently owned by company 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 1,300 pension schemes and their sponsoring employers on an ongoing and project basis. We undertake pensions administration for over one million members and provide advisory services to schemes and corporate sponsors in respect of schemes of all sizes, including 83 with assets over £1bn.