Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Share Price Crosses Below 200-Day Moving Average Following Analyst Downgrade

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ATLC) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday after Wall Street Zen downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $81.21 and traded as low as $79.00. Atlanticus shares last traded at $81.12, with a volume of 264,939 shares traded.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Zacks Research downgraded Atlanticus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. B. Riley Financial restated a “buy” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Texas Capital upgraded shares of Atlanticus from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atlanticus presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.86.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Atlanticus during the second quarter valued at $43,535,000. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new position in Atlanticus in the second quarter valued at about $9,161,293. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Atlanticus in the second quarter worth about $7,286,000. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its position in Atlanticus by 12.3% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 27,401 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,398,000 after purchasing an additional 3,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Atlanticus in the second quarter worth about $2,281,000. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atlanticus Trading Down 11.1%

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.15 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The credit services provider reported $3.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.99 by $0.01. Atlanticus had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 25.17%. The firm had revenue of $775.85 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $775.08 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Atlanticus Holdings Corporation will post 9.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atlanticus Company Profile

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation is a financial technology and consumer finance company that provides credit products to consumers, including people who may have limited access to traditional credit. It works with banks, retailers and other partners to offer credit cards, installment loans and point-of-sale financing.

The company’s offerings include general-purpose and private-label credit cards, as well as financing for purchases in areas such as healthcare and home improvement. Atlanticus also provides financing solutions through relationships with auto dealers and other businesses.

Founded in 1996 as CompuCredit, the company later adopted the Atlanticus name.