Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Rating Lowered to Hold at Zacks Research

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, November 16th. Janney Montgomery Scott boosted their price objective on Encore Capital Group from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.50.

Encore Capital Group Stock Down 2.0%

ECPG opened at $55.58 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.79. Encore Capital Group has a 1-year low of $26.45 and a 1-year high of $57.81. The stock has a market cap of $1.24 billion, a PE ratio of -30.48 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.13.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The asset manager reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $1.25. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 2.89% and a positive return on equity of 25.27%. The company had revenue of $460.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $410.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Encore Capital Group

In other Encore Capital Group news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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. The trade was a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider John Yung sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $52,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 56,609 shares in the company, valued at $2,943,668. The trade was a 1.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,923 shares of company stock valued at $264,620. Corporate insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ECPG. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its stake in Encore Capital Group by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,308,252 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $54,606,000 after purchasing an additional 59,421 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 583,148 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $22,577,000 after purchasing an additional 14,353 shares in the last quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. raised its position in Encore Capital Group by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 350,850 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $14,644,000 after buying an additional 52,700 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 332,702 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $13,887,000 after acquiring an additional 33,350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.5% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 274,318 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,450,000 after purchasing an additional 38,908 shares during the last quarter.

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.