Zacks Research Downgrades Xerox (NASDAQ:XRX) to Strong Sell

Xerox (NASDAQ:XRX) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $2.50 price objective (down from $3.50) on shares of Xerox in a report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings assumed coverage on shares of Xerox in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. They set a “sell (d-)” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xerox currently has an average rating of “Sell” and a consensus target price of $2.50.

Xerox Stock Performance

Shares of XRX stock traded up $0.12 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $1.88. 4,191,596 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,582,266. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $2.22 and its 200 day moving average is $2.91. The company has a market capitalization of $240.72 million, a P/E ratio of -0.23 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.94. Xerox has a 1 year low of $1.65 and a 1 year high of $6.81.

Xerox (NASDAQ:XRX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The information technology services provider reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.25). Xerox had a negative return on equity of 8.26% and a negative net margin of 14.65%.The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Xerox will post 1.07 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xerox

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of XRX. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in Xerox by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 58,000 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Xerox by 4.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 69,047 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 2,838 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Xerox by 1.9% in the second quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 164,566 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $868,000 after purchasing an additional 3,138 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Xerox by 34.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,505 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 3,701 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Xerox by 33.2% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 17,320 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 4,319 shares in the last quarter. 85.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Xerox

Xerox Holdings Corporation (NYSE: XRX) is a global provider of document management technology and services. The company designs and manufactures a broad range of multifunction printers, production printers, digital presses and related consumables. In addition to its hardware offerings, Xerox delivers software and workflow automation solutions, managed print services and cloud-based document platforms that help organizations optimize their information-intensive processes.

Founded in 1906 as The Haloid Photographic Company, Xerox pioneered xerographic imaging in the late 1940s, launching the first plain-paper copier in 1959.