Xerox (NYSE:XRX) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Xerox (NYSE:XRX) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday.

Several other research firms have also commented on XRX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Xerox from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Xerox from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xerox has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $9.50.

Xerox Stock Performance

Xerox stock opened at $9.34 on Friday. Xerox has a 12-month low of $8.02 and a 12-month high of $19.78. The company has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.85 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $8.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.83.

Xerox (NYSE:XRX) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The information technology services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.26). The company had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.63 billion. Xerox had a positive return on equity of 6.60% and a negative net margin of 21.31%. Xerox’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.46 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Xerox will post 1.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xerox Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Xerox’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -9.06%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xerox

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in XRX. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Xerox in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Xerox by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 6,353 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,888 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Xerox by 381.3% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,897 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 8,633 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in shares of Xerox in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $138,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Xerox by 24.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,600 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $183,000 after acquiring an additional 3,444 shares in the last quarter. 85.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Xerox Company Profile

Xerox Holdings Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a workplace technology company that integrates hardware, services, and software for enterprises in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Print and Other; and FITTLE.