Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $42.75, but opened at $49.83. Encore Capital Group shares last traded at $48.9450, with a volume of 162,829 shares traded.

The asset manager reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $1.25. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 19.61% and a negative net margin of 6.07%.The firm had revenue of $460.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on ECPG shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 274,318 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $11,450,000 after purchasing an additional 38,908 shares during the period. State of Wyoming increased its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 402.6% in the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 7,639 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $319,000 after buying an additional 6,119 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $991,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new position in Encore Capital Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $379,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Encore Capital Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $679,000.

Encore Capital Group Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.13. The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.88 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Encore Capital Group Company Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc, a specialty finance company, provides debt recovery solutions and other related services for consumers across financial assets worldwide. The company purchases portfolios of defaulted consumer receivables at deep discounts to face value, as well as manages them by working with individuals as they repay their obligations and works toward financial recovery.