Zacks Research Upgrades CPI Card Group (NASDAQ:PMTS) to “Hold”

CPI Card Group (NASDAQ:PMTS) was upgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Lake Street Capital set a $25.00 price target on shares of CPI Card Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of CPI Card Group from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. B. Riley dropped their price target on shares of CPI Card Group from $34.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of CPI Card Group from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Roth Capital set a $30.00 target price on CPI Card Group in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $30.60.

CPI Card Group Price Performance

Shares of PMTS stock opened at $14.03 on Monday. CPI Card Group has a 1-year low of $11.64 and a 1-year high of $34.25. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $14.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.68. The company has a market cap of $159.74 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 1.20.

CPI Card Group (NASDAQ:PMTS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.16). CPI Card Group had a negative return on equity of 58.98% and a net margin of 2.79%.The firm had revenue of $137.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $140.62 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CPI Card Group will post 1.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at CPI Card Group

In other news, major shareholder Equity Ulc Parallel49 sold 2,126,056 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.51, for a total transaction of $28,723,016.56. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,687,921 shares in the company, valued at $36,313,812.71. This trade represents a 44.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman H Sanford Riley purchased 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.51 per share, with a total value of $2,702,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 252,366 shares in the company, valued at $3,409,464.66. This trade represents a 381.93% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of CPI Card Group by 5.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 498,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,541,000 after acquiring an additional 26,848 shares during the last quarter. Vector Capital Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of CPI Card Group by 18.6% during the third quarter. Vector Capital Management L.P. now owns 459,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,954,000 after buying an additional 71,891 shares during the period. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in CPI Card Group by 75.0% in the third quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 391,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,925,000 after purchasing an additional 167,764 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its position in CPI Card Group by 56.3% in the 2nd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 357,754 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,486,000 after buying an additional 128,808 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of CPI Card Group by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 125,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,977,000 after buying an additional 14,039 shares in the last quarter. 22.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About CPI Card Group

CPI Card Group, Inc (NASDAQ: PMTS) is a leading provider of payment, identification and related credential solutions for financial institutions, governments and private enterprises. The company specializes in the design, manufacturing and personalization of secure plastic and metal cards, including EMV chip, magnetic-stripe and contactless cards. CPI Card Group also offers digital credentialing services and cloud-based card management tools that enable real-time controls, mobile wallet integration, fraud monitoring and analytics.

With a focus on security and innovation, CPI Card Group integrates advanced features such as holograms, microprinting, RFID/NFC technology and laser-engraved artwork into its card products.