Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $57.41 and last traded at $57.41, with a volume of 2473 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $55.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. B. Riley raised their target price on Atlanticus from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Stephens assumed coverage on Atlanticus in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. JMP Securities raised their target price on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $53.00.

Atlanticus Trading Up 4.2 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $38.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $847.55 million, a PE ratio of 12.40 and a beta of 1.92.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 forecast that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atlanticus news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.35, for a total value of $78,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 64,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,036,339.25. This trade represents a 3.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 5,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,291. This represents a 16.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,204 shares of company stock valued at $1,080,197 over the last three months. 51.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ATLC. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 285.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,218 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 6,087 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Atlanticus by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 122,501 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,298,000 after buying an additional 2,348 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atlanticus during the third quarter worth about $313,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new position in shares of Atlanticus during the third quarter valued at about $1,654,000. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 93,431 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,212 shares in the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atlanticus Company Profile

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.