PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA) Short Interest Update

PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 1,481,815 shares, an increase of 17.0% from the February 12th total of 1,266,499 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 745,164 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Approximately 3.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 745,164 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRAA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citizens Jmp lowered shares of PRA Group from a “market outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Citigroup lowered shares of PRA Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of PRA Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of PRA Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PRA Group

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in PRA Group by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,081 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $476,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of PRA Group by 3.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 109,004 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,248,000 after buying an additional 4,010 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of PRA Group by 1.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 960,839 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $14,175,000 after buying an additional 14,197 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS bought a new stake in shares of PRA Group in the second quarter valued at about $150,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of PRA Group by 28.8% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,446 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 3,229 shares during the period. 97.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PRA Group Stock Up 2.3%

PRAA opened at $17.11 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $14.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $657.88 million, a P/E ratio of -2.19 and a beta of 1.23. PRA Group has a 12-month low of $10.25 and a 12-month high of $22.01.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $1.46 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.96. PRA Group had a positive return on equity of 10.50% and a negative net margin of 25.39%.The company had revenue of $333.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $288.86 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that PRA Group will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current year.

About PRA Group

PRA Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company focused on the acquisition and management of nonperforming loans. Founded in 1996 as Portfolio Recovery Associates, the company purchases defaulted consumer and commercial receivables at discounted rates from financial institutions, utilities and other creditors. By combining rigorous analytics with a consumer-centric ethos, PRA Group seeks to maximize recoveries while maintaining respectful and compliant interactions with debtors.

The company’s core activities include first-party and third-party collections across a range of asset classes such as credit cards, auto loans and utility receivables.