XP (NASDAQ:XP) Downgraded by Citigroup to Neutral

Key Points

• Citigroup downgraded XP from “buy” to “neutral” and set a $15 price target, implying 4.46% downside from the reported $15.70 share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive despite the downgrade: XP has four Buy and three Hold ratings, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average target price of $26.80.
• XP exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.53 EPS and $943.55 million in revenue, while revenue rose 8.3% year over year; however, a company director sold 123,257 shares worth approximately $2.4 million.

XP (NASDAQ:XP - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Citigroup from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports. They presently have a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup's price objective would suggest a potential downside of 4.46% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on XP from $25.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Itau BBA Securities upgraded XP from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded XP from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on XP from $26.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, XP has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $26.80.

XP Stock Down 48.4%

XP stock opened at $15.70 on Tuesday. XP has a 12-month low of $13.78 and a 12-month high of $32.73. The company has a quick ratio of 4.80, a current ratio of 4.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $8.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.22, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day moving average of $22.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.24.

XP (NASDAQ:XP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 17th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.03. XP had a net margin of 27.20% and a return on equity of 22.19%. The company had revenue of $943.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $935.15 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.46 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that XP will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at XP

In related news, Director Bruno Constantino Alexandre dos Santos sold 123,257 shares of XP stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.58, for a total value of $2,413,372.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,500,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $29,370,000. The trade was a 7.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On XP

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in XP by 23.6% during the third quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 9,962,623 shares of the company's stock valued at $209,165,000 after buying an additional 1,904,034 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of XP by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,147,245 shares of the company's stock worth $98,004,000 after acquiring an additional 1,289,393 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of XP by 876.6% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,062,720 shares of the company's stock worth $20,179,000 after acquiring an additional 953,902 shares in the last quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP increased its holdings in shares of XP by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 20,699,135 shares of the company's stock valued at $394,112,000 after acquiring an additional 799,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new position in shares of XP during the 1st quarter valued at about $15,184,000. 59.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About XP

XP Inc is a Brazilian financial services company that operates a technology-driven investment and financial products platform. Through its digital channels and network of advisors, the company offers access to products including stocks, bonds, investment funds, exchange-traded funds, insurance and retirement products. It serves individual investors, businesses, institutional clients and independent financial advisors.

The company's principal brands and businesses include XP, Rico and Clear, which provide brokerage and investment services to different customer segments.

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