Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Downgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Separately, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Tuesday, March 5th.

Atlanticus Stock Down 1.6 %

Atlanticus stock opened at $28.21 on Wednesday. Atlanticus has a 12 month low of $26.66 and a 12 month high of $43.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $412.15 million, a PE ratio of 6.67 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.12.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $309.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $304.68 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 27.93%. On average, analysts anticipate that Atlanticus will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atlanticus

In other Atlanticus news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of Atlanticus stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $61,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 69,855 shares in the company, valued at $2,130,577.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 52.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 602,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,290,000 after purchasing an additional 7,234 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Atlanticus by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 359,187 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,602,000 after buying an additional 7,655 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Atlanticus by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 256,236 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,909,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in Atlanticus by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. State Street Corp now owns 97,414 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,643,000 after purchasing an additional 742 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Atlanticus by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 97,332 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,935 shares in the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Atlanticus

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a financial technology company, provides credit and related financial services and products to customers the United States. It operates in two segments, Credit as a Service, and Auto Finance. The Credit as a Service segment originates a range of consumer loan products, such as private label and general purpose credit cards originated by lenders through various channels, including retail and healthcare, direct mail solicitation, digital marketing, and partnerships with third parties; and offers credit to their customers for the purchase of various goods and services, including consumer electronics, furniture, elective medical procedures, healthcare, and home-improvements by partnering with retailers, healthcare providers, and other service providers.