WNS (NYSE:WNS) Rating Lowered to "Hold" at Baird R W

Baird R W downgraded shares of WNS (NYSE:WNS - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on WNS. William Blair downgraded WNS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $76.50 price objective (down from $80.00) on shares of WNS in a research report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC downgraded WNS from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Barrington Research downgraded WNS from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $64.94.

WNS Price Performance

WNS stock traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $74.80. The stock had a trading volume of 4,377,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 739,648. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.93. WNS has a 1-year low of $42.62 and a 1-year high of $75.15. The stock's fifty day moving average is $59.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.34.

WNS (NYSE:WNS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $336.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $323.62 million. WNS had a return on equity of 23.26% and a net margin of 12.94%. WNS's revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that WNS will post 3.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WNS

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hhlr Advisors LTD. bought a new position in shares of WNS in the 4th quarter worth $72,576,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in WNS by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,483,569 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $70,307,000 after buying an additional 312,519 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in WNS by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,408,501 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $86,609,000 after buying an additional 35,074 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in WNS by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,405,672 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $86,435,000 after buying an additional 41,505 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its stake in WNS by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,112,743 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $52,733,000 after buying an additional 53,433 shares during the period. 97.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About WNS

WNS (Holdings) Limited, a business process management (BPM) company, provides data, voice, analytical, and business transformation services worldwide. The company operates through TSLU, MRHP, HCLS, and BFSI segments. It engages in diversified business, including manufacturing, retail, consumer packaged goods, media and entertainment, and telecommunication; travel and leisure, utilities, shipping, and logistics; healthcare and life sciences; banking, financial services, and insurance; and Hi-tech and professional services, as well as procurement.