Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on ECPG. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Northland Capmk raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $70.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Northland Securities upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $62.33.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ ECPG opened at $49.19 on Friday. Encore Capital Group has a 12-month low of $39.64 and a 12-month high of $54.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.27 and a beta of 1.56.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $367.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $360.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The business’s revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Encore Capital Group

In related news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,340 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total value of $65,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,591,849.96. This represents a 3.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ECPG. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Encore Capital Group by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 570,047 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $26,952,000 after acquiring an additional 13,648 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its position in Encore Capital Group by 22.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 197,903 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $9,355,000 after acquiring an additional 36,822 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 191.7% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 49,719 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,350,000 after purchasing an additional 32,672 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 756,335 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,752,000 after purchasing an additional 104,509 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 900,677 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $42,575,000 after purchasing an additional 2,597 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc, a specialty finance company, provides debt recovery solutions and other related services for consumers across financial assets worldwide. The company purchases portfolios of defaulted consumer receivables at deep discounts to face value, as well as manages them by working with individuals as they repay their obligations and works toward financial recovery.