ExlService Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXLS) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of ExlService Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXLS) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $43.60.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 target price (down from $55.00) on shares of ExlService in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on ExlService in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of ExlService from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of ExlService from $51.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of ExlService from $54.00 to $46.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 26th.

ExlService Stock Performance

Shares of EXLS stock opened at $30.45 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.91. ExlService has a one year low of $26.94 and a one year high of $48.79. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $32.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 2.56.

ExlService announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 17th that allows the company to buyback $125.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 2.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ExlService news, EVP Ajay Ayyappan sold 1,197 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.79, for a total value of $35,658.63. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 53,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,605,710.79. This trade represents a 2.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders have sold a total of 11,586 shares of company stock worth $449,725 in the last quarter. 4.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of ExlService

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EXLS. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in ExlService by 193.6% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,645,745 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $203,437,000 after purchasing an additional 3,063,510 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in ExlService by 109.7% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,118,625 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $174,794,000 after buying an additional 2,154,652 shares during the last quarter. Amundi acquired a new stake in ExlService in the third quarter worth $67,862,000. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in ExlService by 534.2% in the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,354,599 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $59,318,000 after buying an additional 1,141,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in ExlService in the second quarter valued at $44,020,000. 92.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ExlService

ExlService Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: EXLS) is a global operations management and analytics company that partners with clients in insurance, healthcare, banking, and financial services to drive digital transformation and operational excellence. The firm delivers analytics-driven solutions and business process outsourcing services, including claims adjudication, finance and accounting, data management, and customer service support. ExlService combines domain expertise with advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, and automation technologies to help organizations optimize processes, enhance customer experiences, and manage risk.

Founded in 1999 and headquartered in New York City, ExlService has grown through a mix of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions, earning recognition for its data analytics capabilities and industry-specific knowledge.