Inspire Investing LLC Has $401,000 Stock Position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Inspire Investing LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,390 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 352 shares during the quarter. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $401,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECPG. Huntington National Bank raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 8,700.0% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 528 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 54.9% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,365 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 484 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 90.9% in the third quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 2,100 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $99,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $156,000. Finally, Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group during the third quarter worth $222,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In related news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total transaction of $65,874.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,591,849.96. The trade was a 3.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ECPG has been the topic of several research reports. Northland Securities boosted their price objective 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. StockNews.com raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Northland Capmk raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JMP Securities upped 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:ECPG opened at $49.97 on Monday. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.64 and a 52-week high of $54.55. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.37 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.81.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced 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). Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The company had revenue of $367.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $360.70 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.