Northern Trust Corp Has $13.70 Million Position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Northern Trust Corp lowered its position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) by 22.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 286,863 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 82,251 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.21% of Encore Capital Group worth $13,703,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Encore Capital Group by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,588,969 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $123,675,000 after acquiring an additional 16,663 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,416,499 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $67,667,000 after buying an additional 327,637 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 512,042 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $24,460,000 after buying an additional 30,545 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 387,550 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $18,513,000 after purchasing an additional 1,968 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Encore Capital Group by 73.1% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 318,096 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $15,195,000 after purchasing an additional 134,309 shares during the last quarter.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 1.3%

NASDAQ ECPG traded down $0.54 on Wednesday, reaching $39.24. 8,661 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 200,936. 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 current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $916.10 million, a P/E ratio of -5.00 and a beta of 1.65. The business's fifty day moving average price is $34.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $42.68.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ECPG has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Encore Capital Group from $64.00 to $57.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.67.

Insider Activity at Encore Capital Group

In other news, CEO Ashish Masih bought 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $35.14 per share, with a total value of $702,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 322,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,324,005.56. This trade represents a 6.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ashwini Gupta bought 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $35.10 per share, for a total transaction of $1,404,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 96,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,401,505.90. This trade represents a 70.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.