Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $51.84 and last traded at $51.57, with a volume of 175007 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $49.50.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on ECPG. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Janney Montgomery Scott lifted their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Zacks Research raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Encore Capital Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.67.

Encore Capital Group Stock Up 3.8%

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $44.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.76 and a beta of 1.43.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The asset manager reported $3.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.92 by $1.25. The business had revenue of $460.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $410.70 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 19.61% and a negative net margin of 6.07%.The company’s revenue was up 25.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ECPG. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 70,836 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,957,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Encore Capital Group by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,517 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,929 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 612 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 345.1% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 819 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 635 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000.

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.