Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $61.6667.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ECPG shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th.

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECPG. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,001,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 41.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 95,945 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,005,000 after purchasing an additional 28,184 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $143,000. Mariner LLC bought a new position in Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $340,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $214,000.

Encore Capital Group Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:ECPG traded up $1.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.29. The company had a trading volume of 232,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 289,768. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Encore Capital Group has a one year low of $26.45 and a one year high of $51.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $44.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.30. The company has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of -13.18 and a beta of 1.43.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The asset manager reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $1.25. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 19.61% and a negative net margin of 6.07%.The business had revenue of $460.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $410.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

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.