Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Stock Price Passes Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ATLC)’s share price passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $54.09 and traded as low as $50.19. Atlanticus shares last traded at $50.96, with a volume of 81,613 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Atlanticus from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up previously from $52.00) on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atlanticus presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.60.

Atlanticus Stock Up 1.1%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $52.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $54.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $771.02 million, a P/E ratio of 9.86 and a beta of 1.81.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The credit services provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.16. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 24.51% and a net margin of 8.54%. The company had revenue of $344.87 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $347.24 million. Equities analysts forecast that Atlanticus Holdings Corporation will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Atlanticus

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATLC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Atlanticus by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,079 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Atlanticus by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,128 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Atlanticus by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 6,413 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Atlanticus by 229.4% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 728 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 19.3% during the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,152 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

About Atlanticus

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a financial technology company, provides credit and related financial services and products to customers the United States. It operates in two segments, Credit as a Service, and Auto Finance. The Credit as a Service segment originates a range of consumer loan products, such as private label and general purpose credit cards originated by lenders through various channels, including retail and healthcare, direct mail solicitation, digital marketing, and partnerships with third parties; and offers credit to their customers for the purchase of various goods and services, including consumer electronics, furniture, elective medical procedures, healthcare, and home-improvements by partnering with retailers, healthcare providers, and other service providers.