Northland Securities Boosts Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Price Target to $66.00

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) had its price objective boosted by Northland Securities from $58.00 to $66.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Northland Securities’ target price points to a potential upside of 38.89% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities lifted their target price on Encore Capital Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Finally, Northland Capmk raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.00.

Encore Capital Group Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ECPG opened at $47.52 on Monday. Encore Capital Group has a 52 week low of $39.64 and a 52 week high of $54.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of -6.05 and a beta of 1.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.78.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The asset manager reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $367.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $360.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. Encore Capital Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Encore Capital Group will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Encore Capital Group

In related news, Director Laura Olle sold 1,340 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.16, for a total value of $65,874.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 32,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,591,849.96. The trade was a 3.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 8,700.0% in the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 528 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. nVerses Capital LLC boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 450.0% during the second quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 54.9% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,365 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the last quarter.

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.