Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Northland Securities set a $70.00 price target on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $59.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Citizens Jmp raised their target price on Encore Capital Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Encore Capital Group has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.50.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

Shares of ECPG opened at $68.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 1.35. Encore Capital Group has a 52-week low of $26.45 and a 52-week high of $74.58. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $62.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.10, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The asset manager reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $1.17. The company had revenue of $473.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $423.14 million. Encore Capital Group had a net margin of 14.52% and a return on equity of 28.19%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 78.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($9.42) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 7,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.04, for a total value of $499,849.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 48,170 shares in the company, valued at $3,325,656.80. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ECPG. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 1,729.6% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 494 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 185.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 717 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 29.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,139 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group during the third quarter valued at about $88,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 168.9% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,716 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706 shares in the last quarter.

About Encore Capital Group

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore’s business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.