Q3 Earnings Forecast for ECPG Issued By Northland Securities

Key Points

• Northland Securities raised its Q3 2026 EPS estimate for Encore to $3.04 (from $3.00); Encore recently reported $3.86 EPS (vs. $3.02 consensus), revenue of $475.4M (+21% YoY) and set FY2026 guidance at $13.00 EPS.
• The stock carries a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with a $86.25 price target (four Buys, two Holds), though analyst opinions have recently varied, including upgrades and a downgrade to Hold.
• Insider Ryan B. Bell sold 7,240 shares while several institutions (RBC, AQR, UBS) increased stakes, and the shares trade at a low valuation of about 6.4x P/E with a market cap near $1.77B.

Encore Capital Group Inc (NASDAQ:ECPG - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Northland Securities increased their Q3 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Encore Capital Group in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, May 6th. Northland Securities analyst M. Grondahl now expects that the asset manager will earn $3.04 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $3.00. The consensus estimate for Encore Capital Group's current full-year earnings is $11.97 per share.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The asset manager reported $3.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.02 by $0.84. Encore Capital Group had a return on equity of 31.46% and a net margin of 16.00%.The firm had revenue of $475.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.0% on a year-over-year basis. Encore Capital Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.000-13.000 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Encore Capital Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Citizens Jmp raised their price objective on shares of Encore Capital Group from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Zacks Research cut Encore Capital Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Encore Capital Group from a "sell (d-)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Encore Capital Group in a research report on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $86.25.

Encore Capital Group Price Performance

Shares of ECPG opened at $82.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.38 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.10, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. Encore Capital Group has a one year low of $35.67 and a one year high of $92.64. The stock's fifty day moving average is $73.99 and its 200-day moving average is $60.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 7,240 shares of Encore Capital Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.04, for a total value of $499,849.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 48,170 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,325,656.80. This trade represents a 13.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.54% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Encore Capital Group by 97.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 33,620 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 16,634 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Encore Capital Group by 263.0% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 68,860 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $2,361,000 after purchasing an additional 49,892 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in Encore Capital Group by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,929 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 612 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Encore Capital Group by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,910 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $3,116,000 after purchasing an additional 1,806 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Encore Capital Group by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 78,465 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,690,000 after purchasing an additional 5,672 shares during the period.

About Encore Capital Group

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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