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

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Several other analysts also recently commented on ECPG. Northland Securities upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Encore Capital Group from $70.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $62.33.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

Shares of ECPG traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $47.60. 232,447 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 149,391. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Encore Capital Group has a 1 year low of $39.64 and a 1 year high of $54.55. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.19 and a beta of 1.56. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $46.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.07.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $367.07 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $360.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ECPG. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 38.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 64,114 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,924,000 after buying an additional 17,799 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 30.4% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,390 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,207,000 after acquiring an additional 11,276 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,692 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $214,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 20.2% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 7,973 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 17.8% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 394,786 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $18,006,000 after acquiring an additional 59,624 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.