Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Hits New 12-Month High After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $59.59 and last traded at $58.40, with a volume of 12167 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.02.

The asset manager reported $3.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $1.17. The business had revenue of $473.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $423.14 million. Encore Capital Group had a return on equity of 28.88% and a net margin of 14.52%.The company’s revenue was up 78.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($9.42) earnings per share.

Encore Capital Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Encore Capital Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results materially beat expectations — EPS $3.37 vs. $2.20 est., revenue $473.6M vs. $423.1M est., and revenue up ~78% YoY; management hosted a call and released slides. Earnings Snapshot & Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Company raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to $12.00 (vs. consensus ~$8.76) and is targeting $1.4B–$1.5B in portfolio purchases while calling for ~10% EPS growth — a materially more bullish outlook that widens the gap with Street estimates. Guidance & Portfolio Purchase Target
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised targets and ratings after the release — Citizens JMP to $90 (market outperform) and Truist to $80 (buy), signaling sizable upside in sell‑side expectations. Analyst Coverage / Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Media coverage and call transcripts/summaries are highlighting the record growth and strategic priorities; these help transparency but are informational unless followed by concrete execution updates. Why ECPG Is Trading Up (Yahoo)
• Negative Sentiment: Balance‑sheet and liquidity remain areas to monitor — Encore’s reported leverage and current ratio (debt/equity ~4.13, current ratio ~0.66) imply higher financial risk if portfolio performance or funding conditions deteriorate.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ECPG. Zacks Research lowered shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Citizens Jmp raised their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 16th. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Encore Capital Group news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,423 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.79, for a total transaction of $75,120.17. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 35,024 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,848,916.96. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total value of $137,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 55,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,047,550. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 76.5% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 9,053 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $492,000 after buying an additional 3,924 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 102,502 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $5,571,000 after buying an additional 3,951 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 6,915 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 1,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VARCOV Co. acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 4th quarter worth $599,000.

Encore Capital Group Trading Up 8.1%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.13. The business’s 50-day moving average is $56.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.28.

About Encore Capital Group

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore’s business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.