Royce & Associates LP Decreases Stock Holdings in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Royce & Associates LP lowered its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 220,389 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 2,659 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $10,528,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECPG. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 191.7% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 49,719 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,350,000 after buying an additional 32,672 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 317.0% during the fourth quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 13,080 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 9,943 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $695,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 177.0% in the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,550 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 14,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 756,335 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $35,752,000 after purchasing an additional 104,509 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Stock Down 1.3 %

Encore Capital Group stock opened at $33.83 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $45.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $801.47 million, a PE ratio of -4.31 and a beta of 1.73. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $31.54 and a fifty-two week high of $51.77.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.55 by ($0.05). Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The business had revenue of $265.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $373.40 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ECPG. StockNews.com cut Encore Capital Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Northland Securities boosted their price target on Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Encore Capital Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Ashwini Gupta purchased 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $35.10 per share, with a total value of $1,404,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 96,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,401,505.90. This trade represents a 70.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ashish Masih acquired 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $35.14 per share, with a total value of $702,800.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 322,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,324,005.56. This trade represents a 6.62 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.