Empowered Funds LLC Purchases Shares of 110,201 Encore Capital Group Inc $ECPG

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC acquired 110,201 Encore Capital Group shares worth approximately $10.3 million, giving it a 0.52% stake. Several other institutions, including Bank of America and Man Group, also initiated positions.
• Analyst sentiment is positive: Encore has an overall “Buy” consensus, with price targets raised as high as $115. Zacks Research upgraded the stock to “Strong Buy.”
• Encore exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.81 in adjusted earnings per share versus a $2.67 estimate and revenue of $491.87 million, up 11.3% year over year.

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 110,201 shares of the asset manager's stock, valued at approximately $10,281,000. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.52% of Encore Capital Group at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Encore Capital Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $295,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $246,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $8,210,000. Finally, Man Group plc acquired a new stake in Encore Capital Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,923,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ECPG shares. Zacks Research upgraded Encore Capital Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Encore Capital Group from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Encore Capital Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Citizens Jmp upped their price objective on Encore Capital Group from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Encore Capital Group currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John Yung sold 2,000 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.08, for a total value of $164,160.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 64,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,299,905.60. This trade represents a 3.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

NASDAQ ECPG opened at $98.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.87, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.17. Encore Capital Group Inc has a 52-week low of $39.94 and a 52-week high of $104.98.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The asset manager reported $2.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $491.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $455.10 million. Encore Capital Group had a net margin of 15.86% and a return on equity of 29.83%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.49 earnings per share. Encore Capital Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-14.000 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group Inc will post 13.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Encore Capital Group Profile

Encore Capital Group, Inc is a global specialty finance company that focuses on the purchase and management of nonperforming consumer receivables. Through its subsidiaries, the company acquires charged-off debt portfolios from credit card issuers, banks, and other financial institutions, and seeks to recover outstanding balances through a combination of customer outreach, payment arrangements, and, where appropriate, legal collection efforts. Encore's business model emphasizes compliance with regulatory and industry standards to ensure ethical and transparent debt-recovery practices.

Headquartered in San Diego, California, Encore operates across North America and Europe.

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