Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Increases Stock Position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,683 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned 0.06% of Encore Capital Group worth $694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ECPG. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $453,000. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 14,043 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $671,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 78.2% during the 3rd quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH now owns 49,081 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,344,000 after acquiring an additional 21,545 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 30.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,705 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 1,330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 13,302 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $635,000 after acquiring an additional 756 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of Encore Capital Group stock opened at $42.06 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.59. 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.74 and a 1 year high of $54.73.

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

Insider Activity at Encore Capital Group

In related news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $275,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 42,404 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,120,200. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 2.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on ECPG. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet lowered shares of Encore Capital Group from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th.

Encore Capital Group 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.