Atlanticus’ (ATLC) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research restated their buy rating on shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $105.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on ATLC. Wall Street Zen raised Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. B. Riley upped their price objective on Atlanticus from $70.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. JMP Securities lifted their target price on Atlanticus from $78.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.80.

Atlanticus Stock Performance

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $56.28 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $62.89 and a 200-day moving average of $56.68. Atlanticus has a one year low of $36.86 and a one year high of $78.91. The company has a market cap of $850.95 million, a P/E ratio of 9.89 and a beta of 2.15.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $393.82 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $373.87 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.51% and a return on equity of 24.20%. Equities research analysts forecast that Atlanticus will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atlanticus Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st were given a $0.4766 dividend. This represents a $1.91 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.39, for a total value of $124,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 61,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,811,529.88. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 50.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atlanticus

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 198.9% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 365,278 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,684,000 after acquiring an additional 243,053 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Atlanticus by 468.2% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 69,298 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,794,000 after purchasing an additional 57,103 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 133.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 93,234 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,105,000 after purchasing an additional 53,312 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Atlanticus by 82.4% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 95,476 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,884,000 after buying an additional 43,142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in Atlanticus during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,666,000. 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.