Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Friday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Northland Securities raised Encore Capital Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Encore Capital Group from $70.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Northland Capmk raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Encore Capital Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $62.33.

Encore Capital Group Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ ECPG opened at $49.19 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $47.04 and its 200 day moving average is $46.26. Encore Capital Group has a 52 week low of $39.64 and a 52 week high of $54.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The company has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.27 and a beta of 1.56.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. Encore Capital Group’s revenue was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total value of $65,874.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 32,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,591,849.96. The trade was a 3.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 8,700.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 528 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. nVerses Capital LLC grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 450.0% during the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 54.9% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,365 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 484 shares during 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.