Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at B. Riley

B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $90.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on ATLC. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a research report on Monday, December 29th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Atlanticus in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Citizens Jmp lifted their price objective on shares of Atlanticus from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, November 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.00.

Atlanticus Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $66.00 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. Atlanticus has a fifty-two week low of $41.37 and a fifty-two week high of $78.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $61.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.81. The stock has a market cap of $999.24 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 1.94.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The credit services provider reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $495.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $503.64 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 7.46% and a return on equity of 22.86%. On average, analysts anticipate that Atlanticus will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atlanticus

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Atlanticus by 151.5% in the second quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 503 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Atlanticus in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atlanticus during the 3rd quarter valued at about $47,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new stake in Atlanticus during the first quarter worth about $71,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Atlanticus by 20,442.9% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,438 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 1,431 shares during the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Atlanticus

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation is a specialty financial services holding company that provides credit products and solutions to consumers across the United States. Through its subsidiaries, the company offers proprietary credit card programs, installment loan products and deposit accounts designed to serve customers who may have limited access to traditional credit. Atlanticus markets its offerings through a variety of channels, including direct‐to‐consumer online platforms, mail order, call centers and partnerships with retail and e-commerce businesses.

The company underwrites and services credit card portfolios under private-label and co-branded agreements, combining technology‐enabled underwriting with tailored customer service.