Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) Shares Acquired by Squarepoint Ops LLC

Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) by 64.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 42,095 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 16,507 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned about 0.18% of Encore Capital Group worth $2,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 197,903 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $9,355,000 after purchasing an additional 36,822 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group during the 4th quarter worth about $84,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Encore Capital Group by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 89,104 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $4,256,000 after purchasing an additional 4,292 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH lifted its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH now owns 45,092 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,154,000 after buying an additional 9,768 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 114,862 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $5,487,000 after purchasing an additional 3,197 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ECPG shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Encore Capital Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Encore Capital Group has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $62.67.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 0.9%

ECPG traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $37.98. 268,331 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 204,936. The company has a market cap of $886.80 million, a PE ratio of -4.84 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The firm's fifty day moving average is $34.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.15. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $26.45 and a 1-year high of $51.77.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The asset manager reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.69. Encore Capital Group had a negative net margin of 13.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.70%. The business had revenue of $392.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $374.49 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.95 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ashish Masih purchased 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $35.14 per share, for a total transaction of $702,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 322,254 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,324,005.56. This trade represents a 6.62% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ashwini Gupta purchased 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $35.10 per share, for a total transaction of $1,404,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 96,909 shares in the company, valued at $3,401,505.90. This represents a 70.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 2.63% of the company's stock.

Encore Capital Group 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.