PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA) Short Interest Update

PRA Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PRAA - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,110,000 shares, an increase of 40.0% from the May 15th total of 793,100 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 487,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 2.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Brett Lee Paschke acquired 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.39 per share, for a total transaction of $66,950.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,056 shares in the company, valued at approximately $402,449.84. This represents a 19.96% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of PRA Group

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRAA. Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of PRA Group during the 4th quarter worth about $868,000. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. raised its stake in PRA Group by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 1,896,000 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,607,000 after purchasing an additional 78,200 shares during the period. Capital Management Corp VA acquired a new position in shares of PRA Group in the 4th quarter valued at $4,659,000. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of PRA Group by 183.8% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 19,801 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 12,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PRA Group during the 4th quarter valued at $390,000. 97.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PRA Group Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:PRAA traded up $0.16 on Monday, hitting $14.71. The company had a trading volume of 456,816 shares, compared to its average volume of 304,809. The company has a market cap of $583.38 million, a PE ratio of 8.22 and a beta of 1.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $15.75 and a 200 day moving average of $19.20. PRA Group has a 52-week low of $12.91 and a 52-week high of $27.54.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The business services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.41 by ($0.32). PRA Group had a net margin of 6.33% and a return on equity of 5.16%. The business had revenue of $269.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $288.63 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.09 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that PRA Group will post 2.1 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

PRA Group Company 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.

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