15,534 Shares in PRA Group, Inc. $PRAA Purchased by Aristeia Capital L.L.C.

Key Points

• Aristeia Capital has invested approximately $320,000 in PRA Group, Inc., acquiring 15,534 shares during the first quarter.
• PRA Group reported earnings of $1.08 per share, exceeding expectations by $0.46, with revenues of $287.69 million for the latest quarter.
• The stock has received positive analyst ratings, with an average target price of $27.50 and recommendations ranging from "buy" to "market outperform."

Aristeia Capital L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 15,534 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $320,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Man Group plc acquired a new stake in shares of PRA Group during the fourth quarter worth $868,000. Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 63.9% during the first quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 56,698 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,169,000 after purchasing an additional 22,114 shares during the period. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 6.4% during the first quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 2,018,200 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $41,615,000 after purchasing an additional 122,200 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 156.1% during the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 88,460 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,824,000 after purchasing an additional 53,922 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 85.3% during the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 405,595 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $8,363,000 after purchasing an additional 186,724 shares during the period. 97.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on PRAA. Wall Street Zen raised PRA Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. JMP Securities set a $24.00 target price on PRA Group and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of PRA Group in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $27.50.

PRA Group Stock Performance

PRA Group stock traded down $0.50 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $16.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 182,677 shares, compared to its average volume of 201,905. The firm has a market capitalization of $657.16 million, a PE ratio of 7.22 and a beta of 1.50. PRA Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $12.91 and a fifty-two week high of $25.43. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $16.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.71.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The business services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $287.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $279.34 million. PRA Group had a return on equity of 6.52% and a net margin of 8.10%. Equities analysts predict that PRA Group, Inc. will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current year.

About PRA Group

PRA Group, Inc, a financial and business services company, engages in the purchase, collection, and management of portfolios of nonperforming loans worldwide. It is involved in the purchase of accounts that are primarily the unpaid obligations of individuals owed to credit originators, which include banks and other types of consumer, retail, and auto finance companies.