Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $98.15 and last traded at $97.7950, with a volume of 61721 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $94.08.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECPG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday. Citizens Jmp lifted their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.00.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 0.8%

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $87.31 and its 200-day moving average is $75.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90. The firm has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.41 and a beta of 1.27.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The asset manager reported $3.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.84. The firm had revenue of $475.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.26 million. Encore Capital Group had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 30.70%. The business’s revenue was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.93 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 13.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In related news, insider John Yung sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.08, for a total value of $164,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 64,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,299,905.60. This trade represents a 3.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 97.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,620 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after buying an additional 16,634 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in Encore Capital Group by 263.0% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 68,860 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,361,000 after buying an additional 49,892 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,929 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $477,000 after acquiring an additional 612 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,910 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 78,465 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,690,000 after acquiring an additional 5,672 shares during the last quarter.

About Encore Capital Group

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore’s business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.