Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $1.25 EPS

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The asset manager reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $1.25, Zacks reports. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 19.61% and a negative net margin of 6.07%.The company had revenue of $460.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $410.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ ECPG traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $47.88. The company had a trading volume of 99,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 291,745. Encore Capital Group has a 1-year low of $26.45 and a 1-year high of $51.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of -12.78 and a beta of 1.43. The business has a 50 day moving average of $43.15 and a 200-day moving average of $40.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ECPG. Janney Montgomery Scott raised their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ECPG. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 97.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,620 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 16,634 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 263.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 68,860 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,361,000 after purchasing an additional 49,892 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Encore Capital Group by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,929 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 612 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 2.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,910 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $3,116,000 after buying an additional 1,806 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Encore Capital Group by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 78,465 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,690,000 after acquiring an additional 5,672 shares during the last quarter.

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.