Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Receives “Market Outperform” Rating from JMP Securities

JMP Securities reaffirmed their market outperform rating on shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) in a research note released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $39.00 price objective on the credit services provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Atlanticus from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th.

Atlanticus Trading Down 0.7 %

Atlanticus stock opened at $24.34 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $360.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 1.84. Atlanticus has a one year low of $23.78 and a one year high of $43.70. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $30.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.86.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.14. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 27.93%. The company had revenue of $309.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $304.68 million. On average, analysts forecast that Atlanticus will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Atlanticus news, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III purchased 263,432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.21 per share, with a total value of $7,431,416.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 263,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,431,416.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Atlanticus news, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III purchased 263,432 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.21 per share, with a total value of $7,431,416.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 263,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,431,416.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $61,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 69,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,130,577.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 52.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Atlanticus

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 602,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,290,000 after purchasing an additional 7,234 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 2.2% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 359,187 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,602,000 after purchasing an additional 7,655 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 256,236 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,295 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 0.8% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 97,414 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,643,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 2.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 97,332 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

About Atlanticus

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a financial technology company, provides credit and related financial services and products to customers the United States. It operates in two segments, Credit as a Service, and Auto Finance. The Credit as a Service segment originates a range of consumer loan products, such as private label and general purpose credit cards originated by lenders through various channels, including retail and healthcare, direct mail solicitation, digital marketing, and partnerships with third parties; and offers credit to their customers for the purchase of various goods and services, including consumer electronics, furniture, elective medical procedures, healthcare, and home-improvements by partnering with retailers, healthcare providers, and other service providers.