Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Stock Price Up 5.9% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) rose 5.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday after JMP Securities raised their price target on the stock from $45.00 to $54.00. JMP Securities currently has a market outperform rating on the stock. Atlanticus traded as high as $48.90 and last traded at $48.90. Approximately 24,371 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 44% from the average daily volume of 16,941 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.18.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on ATLC. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Atlanticus in a report on Wednesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.35, for a total transaction of $78,375.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 64,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,036,339.25. This represents a 3.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 51.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Atlanticus

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 1.0% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 258,689 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,655,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 393.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,820 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Atlanticus by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,094 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $447,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 65.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,324 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 920 shares during the period. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atlanticus Stock Up 6.5 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $36.35 and a 200 day moving average of $32.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market cap of $725.16 million, a P/E ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 1.92.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $351.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.54 EPS for the current year.

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.