Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Earns Market Outperform Rating from JMP Securities

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG)‘s stock had its “market outperform” rating reissued by investment analysts at JMP Securities in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $60.00 price objective on the asset manager’s stock. JMP Securities’ target price suggests a potential upside of 44.09% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, TheStreet downgraded Encore Capital Group from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th.

Encore Capital Group Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of ECPG stock opened at $41.64 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. Encore Capital Group has a fifty-two week low of $34.74 and a fifty-two week high of $54.73. The company has a market cap of $980.62 million, a PE ratio of -4.74 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $46.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.95.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The asset manager reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.03. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 9.46% and a negative net margin of 16.89%. The company had revenue of $277.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $330.77 million. Equities analysts predict that Encore Capital Group will post 5.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Encore Capital Group news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 5,500 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $275,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,120,200. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECPG. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 162.8% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 4,216 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 2,612 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 33.0% in the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,117 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $823,000 after acquiring an additional 3,253 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 21,380 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,341,000 after acquiring an additional 2,638 shares in the last quarter. Quantedge Capital Pte Ltd raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 108.2% in the 1st quarter. Quantedge Capital Pte Ltd now owns 12,700 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $797,000 after acquiring an additional 6,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 44.8% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 110,383 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,924,000 after acquiring an additional 34,132 shares in the last quarter.

About Encore Capital Group

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.