Ryan Bell Sells 7,240 Shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Stock

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) insider Ryan Bell sold 7,240 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.04, for a total transaction of $499,849.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 48,170 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,325,656.80. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ECPG opened at $72.68 on Friday. Encore Capital Group Inc has a 12-month low of $26.45 and a 12-month high of $74.58. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $57.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.34. The firm has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a PE ratio of 6.63 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.10.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The asset manager reported $3.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $1.17. Encore Capital Group had a return on equity of 28.19% and a net margin of 14.52%.The business had revenue of $473.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $423.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($9.42) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 78.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on ECPG. Zacks Research raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Northland Securities set a $70.00 target price on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Citizens Jmp lifted their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Encore Capital Group from $59.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in Encore Capital Group by 97.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,620 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 16,634 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 263.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 68,860 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,361,000 after buying an additional 49,892 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 4.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,929 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $477,000 after buying an additional 612 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,910 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,116,000 after acquiring an additional 1,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 78,465 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,690,000 after acquiring an additional 5,672 shares in the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore’s business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.