Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Raises Stake in PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA - Free Report) by 85.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 405,595 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 186,724 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 1.03% of PRA Group worth $8,363,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRAA. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in PRA Group by 805.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,241 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,104 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of PRA Group by 154.2% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,345 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 2,029 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of PRA Group during the 4th quarter valued at $134,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in PRA Group by 231.3% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 7,278 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $152,000 after buying an additional 5,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of PRA Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $155,000. 97.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on PRAA shares. JMP Securities lowered their target price on PRA Group from $30.00 to $23.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of PRA Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd.

PRA Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PRAA traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.60. The company had a trading volume of 119,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 306,219. PRA Group, Inc. has a one year low of $12.91 and a one year high of $27.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $15.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.13. The company has a market capitalization of $578.84 million, a PE ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 1.53.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The business services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.32). The company had revenue of $269.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $288.63 million. PRA Group had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 5.09%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.09 EPS. Research analysts expect that PRA Group, Inc. will post 2.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PRA Group

In other news, Director Brett Lee Paschke purchased 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $13.39 per share, with a total value of $66,950.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $402,449.84. This represents a 19.96% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

PRA Group Profile

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.