PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) Trading 6.6% Higher – Should You Buy?

PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA)’s share price shot up 6.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $20.68 and last traded at $20.88. Approximately 76,903 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 544,192 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.58.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRAA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of PRA Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of PRA Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of PRA Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, June 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PRA Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

PRA Group Stock Up 4.6%

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $17.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.66. The firm has a market cap of $770.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.04 and a beta of 1.11.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.99. The firm had revenue of $372.17 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $299.99 million. PRA Group had a positive return on equity of 15.56% and a negative net margin of 19.91%. On average, analysts expect that PRA Group, Inc. will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of PRA Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of PRA Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,114,000. Globeflex Capital L P purchased a new stake in PRA Group in the 2nd quarter worth $208,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in PRA Group in the 2nd quarter worth $240,000. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new position in PRA Group during the second quarter worth $397,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in PRA Group during the second quarter valued at $49,000. 97.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PRA Group Company Profile

PRA Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company focused on the acquisition and management of nonperforming loans. Founded in 1996 as Portfolio Recovery Associates, the company purchases defaulted consumer and commercial receivables at discounted rates from financial institutions, utilities and other creditors. By combining rigorous analytics with a consumer-centric ethos, PRA Group seeks to maximize recoveries while maintaining respectful and compliant interactions with debtors.

The company’s core activities include first-party and third-party collections across a range of asset classes such as credit cards, auto loans and utility receivables.