Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Price Target Raised to $66.00

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) had its price target boosted by Northland Securities from $58.00 to $66.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the asset manager’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

Encore Capital Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Encore Capital Group stock opened at $47.52 on Monday. Encore Capital Group has a fifty-two week low of $39.64 and a fifty-two week high of $54.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.05 and a beta of 1.55. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $48.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.78.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $367.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. Encore Capital Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,340 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total value of $65,874.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 32,381 shares in the company, valued at $1,591,849.96. This trade represents a 3.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. 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 during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the third quarter worth $695,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 14.0% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 73,105 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,051,000 after acquiring an additional 8,991 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 177.0% during the 3rd 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 raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 756,335 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,752,000 after purchasing an additional 104,509 shares during the period.

About Encore Capital Group

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.