Homestead Advisers Corp Sells 36,300 Shares of Encore Capital Group Inc $ECPG

Homestead Advisers Corp lessened its stake in Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 27.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 97,683 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 36,300 shares during the period. Homestead Advisers Corp’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $3,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Encore Capital Group by 13.1% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 51,985 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,782,000 after purchasing an additional 6,040 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 0.6% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,144,464 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $39,232,000 after buying an additional 7,010 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 117,967 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,044,000 after buying an additional 3,105 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 790,392 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $27,095,000 after buying an additional 91,019 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 1st quarter valued at $228,000.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 5.0%

NASDAQ:ECPG opened at $41.10 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $43.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.11. The stock has a market cap of $945.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -10.99 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.43. Encore Capital Group Inc has a 12 month low of $26.45 and a 12 month high of $51.77.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The asset manager reported $2.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $1.05. The business had revenue of $442.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $383.42 million. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 6.07% and a positive return on equity of 19.61%. Encore Capital Group’s quarterly revenue was up 24.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.34 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ECPG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report 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 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.67.

About Encore Capital Group

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.