State Street Corp Raises Stock Position in Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC)

State Street Corp grew its stake in Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 93,431 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,212 shares during the quarter. State Street Corp owned approximately 0.63% of Atlanticus worth $3,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ATLC. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 5.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,978 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $596,000 after buying an additional 804 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Atlanticus by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,127 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 393.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,820 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

Atlanticus Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $56.62 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $51.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.10. The firm has a market cap of $834.52 million, a PE ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 2.05. Atlanticus Holdings Co. has a 1-year low of $23.09 and a 1-year high of $64.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.04. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. The company had revenue of $351.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.64 million. On average, analysts predict that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATLC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. B. Riley upped their price objective on shares of Atlanticus from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Stephens began coverage on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $54.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 16,004 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.55, for a total transaction of $889,022.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 50,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,831,550.15. The trade was a 23.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $55,909.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,291. The trade was a 16.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,504 shares of company stock worth $962,522 over the last three months. Company insiders own 51.80% of the company’s stock.

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.