Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Trading Down 5.8% – Here’s What Happened

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) shares were down 5.8% on Monday . The company traded as low as $55.30 and last traded at $56.02. Approximately 49,712 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 20% from the average daily volume of 62,161 shares. The stock had previously closed at $59.47.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ATLC. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. B. Riley raised Atlanticus to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Stephens began coverage on Atlanticus in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities upped their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $54.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.20.

Atlanticus Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $825.44 million, a PE ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 2.10. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $58.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $351.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 25.14%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atlanticus

In other news, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $55,909.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,291. The trade was a 16.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 16,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.55, for a total value of $889,022.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 50,973 shares in the company, valued at $2,831,550.15. This trade represents a 23.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,504 shares of company stock worth $962,522 in the last ninety days. 51.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atlanticus

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATLC. FMR LLC increased its position in Atlanticus by 393.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,820 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% during the third quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Atlanticus during the 4th quarter worth $129,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the period. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atlanticus in the fourth quarter valued at about $280,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

About Atlanticus

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.