New York State Teachers Retirement System Lowers Position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

New York State Teachers Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,337 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.13% of Encore Capital Group worth $1,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ECPG. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 38.4% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 64,114 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,924,000 after buying an additional 17,799 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,390 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,207,000 after purchasing an additional 11,276 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,692 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 20.2% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 7,973 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 394,786 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $18,006,000 after buying an additional 59,624 shares during the period.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

ECPG opened at $49.97 on Friday. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.64 and a twelve month high of $54.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of -6.37 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $46.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.71.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.22). Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 13.00% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The company had revenue of $367.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECPG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Northland Capmk upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. JMP Securities upped 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 research report on Thursday. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on 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 raised Encore Capital Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $55.00 to $58.00 in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.33.

About Encore Capital Group

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.