Northern Trust Corp Grows Position in WNS (Holdings) Limited $WNS

Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in WNS (Holdings) Limited (NYSE:WNS) by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 360,652 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,832 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.78% of WNS worth $22,176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in WNS by 105.6% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 73,128 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,497,000 after purchasing an additional 37,555 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in WNS in the 1st quarter valued at $12,726,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in WNS in the 1st quarter valued at $37,321,000. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. acquired a new position in WNS in the 1st quarter valued at $217,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in WNS in the 1st quarter valued at $269,000. 97.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WNS Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:WNS opened at $75.49 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $72.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.91. WNS has a 12-month low of $42.62 and a 12-month high of $75.58.

WNS (NYSE:WNS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $339.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $323.13 million. WNS had a return on equity of 22.90% and a net margin of 12.11%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that WNS will post 3.8 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WNS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC downgraded WNS from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $76.50 target price (down from $80.00) on shares of WNS in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. William Blair downgraded WNS from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded WNS from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on WNS in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $76.50 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.13.

WNS Profile

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.