Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ATLC) shares gapped up before the market opened on Monday after B. Riley raised their price target on the stock from $70.00 to $90.00. The stock had previously closed at $72.17, but opened at $75.31. B. Riley currently has a buy rating on the stock. Atlanticus shares last traded at $77.19, with a volume of 11,215 shares trading hands.

ATLC has been the topic of a number of other reports. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $78.00 target price on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered Atlanticus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of Atlanticus stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.39, for a total value of $124,780.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,811,529.88. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 51.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Atlanticus by 198.9% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 365,278 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,684,000 after acquiring an additional 243,053 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 126,841 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,945,000 after buying an additional 2,812 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 25.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 120,071 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,574,000 after buying an additional 24,595 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 133.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 93,234 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,105,000 after buying an additional 53,312 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 82,629 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,524,000 after buying an additional 982 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

Atlanticus Trading Up 5.5%

The firm has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.38 and a beta of 2.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.32 and a 200 day moving average of $54.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $393.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $373.87 million. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 24.20% and a net margin of 8.51%. Analysts predict that Atlanticus Holdings Corporation will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atlanticus Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st were paid a $0.4766 dividend. This represents a $1.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%.

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.