Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) Stake Cut by Bank of Montreal Can

Bank of Montreal Can decreased its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 83.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 121,354 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 606,525 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $5,797,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the fourth quarter worth about $3,361,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 22.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 197,903 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $9,355,000 after purchasing an additional 36,822 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 191.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 49,719 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,350,000 after purchasing an additional 32,672 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 512,042 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $24,460,000 after purchasing an additional 30,545 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Encore Capital Group by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,588,969 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $123,675,000 after buying an additional 16,663 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, CEO Ashish Masih acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $35.14 per share, for a total transaction of $702,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 322,254 shares in the company, valued at $11,324,005.56. This represents a 6.62 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Ashwini Gupta bought 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $35.10 per share, for a total transaction of $1,404,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 96,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,401,505.90. This trade represents a 70.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of 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 target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.67.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

ECPG stock opened at $29.62 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $38.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.49. The company has a market capitalization of $701.73 million, a P/E ratio of -3.77 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.45 and a fifty-two week high of $51.77.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by ($0.05). Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The company had revenue of $265.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $373.40 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.