Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Upgraded to Outperform at Northland Securities

Northland Securities upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a report published on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $58.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock, up from their prior price target of $55.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Monday. Truist Financial cut their price target on Encore Capital Group from $70.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

ECPG opened at $47.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.54 and a beta of 1.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.27. Encore Capital Group has a 12-month low of $34.74 and a 12-month high of $54.55.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The asset manager reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $355.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $346.06 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 15.43% and a positive return on equity of 11.12%. The company’s revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Research analysts predict that Encore Capital Group will post 5.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Encore Capital Group in the fourth quarter worth about $3,457,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $452,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 114.8% in the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 22,419 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,023,000 after acquiring an additional 11,984 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 38.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 64,114 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,924,000 after acquiring an additional 17,799 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,390 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,207,000 after acquiring an additional 11,276 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc, a specialty finance company, provides debt recovery solutions and other related services for consumers across financial assets worldwide. The company purchases portfolios of defaulted consumer receivables at deep discounts to face value, as well as manages them by working with individuals as they repay their obligations and works toward financial recovery.