36,639 Encore Capital Group Inc $ECPG Shares Sold by Virtus Advisers LLC

Virtus Advisers LLC cut its position in shares of Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 52.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,063 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 36,639 shares during the period. Encore Capital Group makes up 1.2% of Virtus Advisers LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Virtus Advisers LLC’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $3,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECPG. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 185.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 366 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 40.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 386 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group during the 1st quarter worth $46,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group during the second quarter worth approximately $89,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,339 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Encore Capital Group

In other Encore Capital Group news, Director Laura Olle sold 10,493 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.93, for a total transaction of $1,184,974.49. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 26,675 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,012,407.75. This trade represents a 28.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ECPG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Northland Securities set a $124.00 price objective on Encore Capital Group in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Citizens Jmp increased their price objective on Encore Capital Group from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 7th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $128.67.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of ECPG stock traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $109.49. The stock had a trading volume of 155,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 259,416. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.93, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.28 billion, a PE ratio of 7.01 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $101.23 and its 200 day moving average is $85.58. Encore Capital Group Inc has a twelve month low of $47.49 and a twelve month high of $126.74.

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

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

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.