Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Sees Large Volume Increase – Should You Buy?

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ATLC) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 74,260 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 31% from the previous session’s volume of 108,159 shares.The stock last traded at $99.02 and had previously closed at $100.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. William Blair set a $100.00 price target on shares of Atlanticus in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on Atlanticus from $105.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Zacks Research cut Atlanticus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Texas Capital upgraded Atlanticus from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atlanticus has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.00.

Atlanticus Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.06. The firm has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.89 and a beta of 2.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The credit services provider reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $744.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $716.35 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 25.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Atlanticus Holdings Corporation will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atlanticus news, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III sold 15,676 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.26, for a total transaction of $1,634,379.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 259,392 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,044,209.92. This represents a 5.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey A. Howard sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.01, for a total value of $1,030,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 663,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,322,927.65. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 75,000 shares of company stock worth $7,868,627 in the last quarter. 51.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Atlanticus during the second quarter valued at approximately $7,286,000. Philadelphia Financial Management of San Francisco LLC bought a new stake in Atlanticus in the second quarter valued at $9,161,293,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Atlanticus during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,066,000. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new position in Atlanticus during the 2nd quarter valued at $255,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in Atlanticus in the 2nd quarter worth $269,000. 14.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atlanticus Company Profile

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation is a specialty financial services holding company that provides credit products and solutions to consumers across the United States. Through its subsidiaries, the company offers proprietary credit card programs, installment loan products and deposit accounts designed to serve customers who may have limited access to traditional credit. Atlanticus markets its offerings through a variety of channels, including direct?to?consumer online platforms, mail order, call centers and partnerships with retail and e-commerce businesses.

The company underwrites and services credit card portfolios under private-label and co-branded agreements, combining technology?enabled underwriting with tailored customer service.