Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Zacks Research lowered shares of Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

ECPG has been the subject of several other reports. Truist Financial increased their target price on Encore Capital Group from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Citizens Jmp increased their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Encore Capital Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.00.

Encore Capital Group Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ ECPG opened at $90.17 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. Encore Capital Group has a 1 year low of $35.67 and a 1 year high of $94.60. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.69. The firm has a market cap of $1.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.00 and a beta of 1.27.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The asset manager reported $3.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.84. Encore Capital Group had a return on equity of 30.70% and a net margin of 16.00%.The firm had revenue of $475.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.26 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.93 earnings per share. Encore Capital Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. Encore Capital Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Encore Capital Group

In other news, insider John Yung sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.08, for a total value of $164,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 64,570 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,299,905.60. The trade was a 3.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Encore Capital Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ECPG. IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 1,729.6% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 494 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 185.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 717 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 29.1% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,139 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 168.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,716 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 1,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the third quarter worth about $143,000.

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.