Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Lifted to “Strong-Buy” at Northland Capmk

Northland Capmk upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Monday, October 14th. Northland Securities raised Encore Capital Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Encore Capital Group from $70.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.67.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 0.8 %

Encore Capital Group stock opened at $47.15 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.50, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 billion, a PE ratio of -5.50 and a beta of 1.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $47.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $45.31. Encore Capital Group has a one year low of $34.74 and a one year high of $54.55.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The asset manager reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $355.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $346.06 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 15.43% and a positive return on equity of 11.12%. Encore Capital Group’s revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of ECPG. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. nVerses Capital LLC grew its stake in Encore Capital Group by 450.0% in the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Encore Capital Group in the 2nd quarter worth $60,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group during the first quarter worth $138,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 8.8% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,980 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 403 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

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.