Royce & Associates LP Reduces Position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Royce & Associates LP decreased its holdings in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 220,389 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 2,659 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned 0.93% of Encore Capital Group worth $10,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Jane Street Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 191.7% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 49,719 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,350,000 after buying an additional 32,672 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp grew its stake in Encore Capital Group by 317.0% during the fourth quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 13,080 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 9,943 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $695,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 177.0% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 22,550 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 14,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 756,335 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,752,000 after purchasing an additional 104,509 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of ECPG opened at $33.83 on Tuesday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.54 and a 52-week high of $51.77. The company has a market cap of $801.47 million, a PE ratio of -4.31 and a beta of 1.73. The business has a fifty day moving average of $45.43 and a 200 day moving average of $46.78.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by ($0.05). Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 12.70% and a negative net margin of 13.91%. The firm had revenue of $265.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $373.40 million. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, Director Ashwini Gupta bought 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $35.10 per share, for a total transaction of $1,404,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 96,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,401,505.90. This represents a 70.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Ashish Masih purchased 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $35.14 per share, for a total transaction of $702,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 322,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,324,005.56. This represents a 6.62 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on ECPG. Northland Securities lifted their price objective on Encore Capital Group from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Encore Capital Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Encore Capital Group presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $62.67.

About Encore Capital Group

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.