Short Interest in Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) Grows By 13.2%

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 282,000 shares, an increase of 13.2% from the November 30th total of 249,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 34,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.1 days. Currently, 5.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Atlanticus Trading Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ:ATLC traded down $0.87 on Tuesday, hitting $55.75. 8,925 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 21,740. The stock has a market cap of $821.70 million, a PE ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 2.05. Atlanticus has a fifty-two week low of $23.09 and a fifty-two week high of $64.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $51.41 and a 200-day moving average of $39.31.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $351.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Atlanticus will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on ATLC. BTIG Research boosted their target price on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on shares of Atlanticus from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of Atlanticus from $54.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Atlanticus in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $57.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atlanticus

In related news, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 16,004 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.55, for a total transaction of $889,022.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 50,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,831,550.15. This represents a 23.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of Atlanticus stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total value of $55,909.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,659 shares in the company, valued at $277,291. This represents a 16.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,504 shares of company stock worth $962,522. 51.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 393.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,820 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% in the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 1,823 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,127 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in Atlanticus by 285.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,218 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $289,000 after acquiring an additional 6,087 shares during the period. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.