Wall Street Zen Downgrades Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) to Buy

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Northland Securities set a $70.00 target price on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Citizens Jmp increased their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Encore Capital Group from $59.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.50.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of ECPG stock opened at $68.87 on Friday. Encore Capital Group has a fifty-two week low of $26.45 and a fifty-two week high of $74.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.10, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.45. The company has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.28 and a beta of 1.35.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The asset manager reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $1.17. The firm had revenue of $473.55 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $423.14 million. Encore Capital Group had a return on equity of 28.19% and a net margin of 14.52%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 78.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($9.42) EPS. Research analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other Encore Capital Group news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 7,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.04, for a total value of $499,849.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 48,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,325,656.80. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ECPG. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 1,729.6% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 494 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 185.7% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 717 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 29.1% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,139 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group in the third quarter worth approximately $88,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 168.9% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,716 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 1,706 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore’s business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.