Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday morning.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on ECPG. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Northland Securities raised their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $62.67.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ECPG traded up $0.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $30.41. The company's stock had a trading volume of 291,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 185,459. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $36.83 and a 200 day moving average of $44.04. Encore Capital Group has a twelve month low of $26.45 and a twelve month high of $51.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $720.44 million, a PE ratio of -3.87 and a beta of 1.58.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55 by ($0.05). Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. The company had revenue of $265.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $373.40 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Encore Capital Group

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 30.1% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,416,499 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $67,667,000 after purchasing an additional 327,637 shares in the last quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 4th quarter worth $10,291,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 73.1% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 318,096 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $15,195,000 after buying an additional 134,309 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,361,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 256,002 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $12,228,000 after buying an additional 58,099 shares in the last quarter.

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.