Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) Receives $65.00 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) have earned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the four analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $65.00.

Several equities analysts have commented on ECPG shares. Northland Capmk upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Northland Securities raised their target price on shares of Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 29th.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of ECPG opened at $47.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.06 and a beta of 1.55. The company’s fifty day moving average is $48.25 and its 200-day moving average is $47.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. Encore Capital Group has a 12 month low of $39.64 and a 12 month high of $54.55.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $367.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. Encore Capital Group’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECPG. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 8,700.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 528 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. nVerses Capital LLC increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 450.0% during the 2nd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in Encore Capital Group by 54.9% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,365 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group in the third quarter worth $156,000.

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.