Encore Capital Group Inc $ECPG Shares Purchased by American Century Companies Inc.

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Encore Capital Group Inc. by 13.1% during Q1, now holding 51,985 shares worth approximately $1.8 million.
• Several other hedge funds, including Corton Capital and GAMMA Investing LLC, have also increased their investments in Encore Capital Group this quarter.
• Analysts have upgraded Encore Capital Group to a "hold" rating, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $62.67.

American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,985 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 6,040 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.22% of Encore Capital Group worth $1,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ECPG. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 14,158 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $676,000 after purchasing an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $241,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 20,575 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $983,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 67,268 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,213,000 after buying an additional 8,213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $667,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Encore Capital Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.67.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

ECPG stock traded up $2.55 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $44.45. 677,286 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 288,732. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $39.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.66. The stock has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.88 and a beta of 1.52. Encore Capital Group Inc has a fifty-two week low of $26.45 and a fifty-two week high of $51.77. 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 (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The asset manager reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $1.05. The firm had revenue of $442.12 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $383.42 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 19.61% and a negative net margin of 6.07%.Encore Capital Group's revenue was up 24.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

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.