Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Director Sells $1,184,974.49 in Stock

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) Director Laura Olle sold 10,493 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.93, for a total value of $1,184,974.49. Following the sale, the director owned 26,675 shares in the company, valued at $3,012,407.75. The trade was a 28.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of Encore Capital Group stock traded down $2.49 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $109.86. The company had a trading volume of 172,910 shares, compared to its average volume of 305,290. The stock has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.04 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.93. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $100.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.04. Encore Capital Group Inc has a 12-month low of $47.49 and a 12-month high of $126.74.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The asset manager reported $5.57 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.35 by $2.22. The company had revenue of $544.54 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $466.80 million. Encore Capital Group had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 33.67%. Encore Capital Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.17 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 16.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on ECPG. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 6th. Northland Securities set a $124.00 target price on Encore Capital Group in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.67.

Institutional Trading of Encore Capital Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 4.1% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 40.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 386 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 12.1% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,461 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $136,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 185.9% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 366 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 26.8% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,339 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 283 shares during the last quarter.

About Encore Capital Group

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ: ECPG) is a specialty finance company that purchases portfolios of charged-off consumer debt and works to recover amounts owed. Its activities include managing repayment arrangements and providing customer support through its own operations and service providers. The company operates through businesses including Midland Credit Management in the United States and Cabot Credit Management in the United Kingdom and other European markets. Its operations also include customer-service and support functions in India.