PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) Shares Down 5.7% – Should You Sell?

Shares of PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA) were down 5.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $17.40 and last traded at $17.2750. Approximately 93,743 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 557,803 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PRAA. Citigroup downgraded shares of PRA Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Citizens Jmp downgraded PRA Group from a “market outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of PRA Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded PRA Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $25.00.

PRA Group Stock Down 0.9%

The company has a market cap of $642.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.15 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.47.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.96. PRA Group had a positive return on equity of 10.50% and a negative net margin of 25.39%.The business had revenue of $333.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $288.86 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PRA Group, Inc. will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PRA Group

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of PRA Group by 301.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,684 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,264 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in PRA Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in PRA Group by 145.6% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,481 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 1,471 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in PRA Group by 146.8% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,848 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 1,694 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 140.0% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,618 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 2,694 shares during the last quarter. 97.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PRA Group Company Profile

PRA Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company focused on the acquisition and management of nonperforming loans. Founded in 1996 as Portfolio Recovery Associates, the company purchases defaulted consumer and commercial receivables at discounted rates from financial institutions, utilities and other creditors. By combining rigorous analytics with a consumer-centric ethos, PRA Group seeks to maximize recoveries while maintaining respectful and compliant interactions with debtors.

The company’s core activities include first-party and third-party collections across a range of asset classes such as credit cards, auto loans and utility receivables.