CGI Group (NYSE:GIB) Hits New 52-Week Low Following Weak Earnings

CGI Group, Inc. (NYSE:GIB) (TSE:GIB.A)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as low as $83.75 and last traded at $84.51, with a volume of 321380 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $88.23.

The technology company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.55 by ($0.04). CGI Group had a return on equity of 18.61% and a net margin of 10.25%.The business had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.97 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis.

CGI Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. CGI Group’s dividend payout ratio is 8.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cibc Captl Mkts lowered shares of CGI Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of CGI Group in a report on Monday, January 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $81.00 price target (down previously from $105.00) on shares of CGI Group in a report on Monday, November 10th. TD Securities raised CGI Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of CGI Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CGI Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.00.

Institutional Trading of CGI Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of GIB. First Horizon Corp bought a new position in CGI Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CGI Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $144,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of CGI Group by 53.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,452 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $152,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the last quarter. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in CGI Group in the 3rd quarter worth $174,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in CGI Group in the third quarter worth $236,000. Institutional investors own 66.68% of the company’s stock.

CGI Group Trading Up 0.1%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.06 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

About CGI Group

CGI Group Inc is a global information technology and business consulting firm that delivers a broad range of services including IT consulting, systems integration, application development and maintenance, infrastructure and network services, managed IT and business process outsourcing. The company works with clients to design, build and operate IT systems and business solutions, with capabilities spanning cloud and hybrid IT environments, cybersecurity, data analytics and artificial intelligence, digital transformation and enterprise resource planning implementations.

Founded in 1976 in Quebec by Serge Godin and André Imbeau, CGI has grown from a regional systems integrator into a multinational professional services organization.