Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on ECPG. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Northland Securities raised their price objective on Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.67.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ECPG opened at $29.51 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $699.12 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.76 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $37.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.28. Encore Capital Group has a 1-year low of $26.45 and a 1-year high of $51.77.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.55 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $265.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $373.40 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, Director Ashwini Gupta purchased 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $35.10 per share, with a total value of $1,404,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 96,909 shares in the company, valued at $3,401,505.90. This represents a 70.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ashish Masih acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $35.14 per share, for a total transaction of $702,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 322,254 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,324,005.56. This represents a 6.62 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 120.8% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 530 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 827.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 751 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 670 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 152.5% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,333 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $84,000.

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.