Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday.

Separately, JMP Securities reissued a market outperform rating and issued a $39.00 price objective on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th.

Atlanticus Trading Up 3.9 %

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $27.11 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market cap of $401.31 million, a PE ratio of 6.41 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a 50-day moving average of $29.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $31.72. Atlanticus has a 1-year low of $23.20 and a 1-year high of $43.70.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $309.09 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $304.68 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 27.93%. On average, analysts predict that Atlanticus will post 4.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Atlanticus news, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III acquired 263,432 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.21 per share, with a total value of $7,431,416.72. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 263,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,431,416.72. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III purchased 263,432 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.21 per share, for a total transaction of $7,431,416.72. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 263,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,431,416.72. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of Atlanticus stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total transaction of $61,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 69,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,130,577.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 52.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Atlanticus by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 602,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $23,290,000 after acquiring an additional 7,234 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 2.7% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 50,325 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,525,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 4.2% during the third quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 28,055 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 59.9% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 22,176 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $672,000 after purchasing an additional 8,305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 16.5% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 12,700 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares in the last quarter. 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.