Wall Street Zen Downgrades Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) to Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen has downgraded Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating.
• Atlanticus reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings with an EPS of $1.51, exceeding estimates of $1.30, and generated $393.82 million in revenue.
• The stock has seen a price increase of 6.2% recently, with a current trading price around $72.17.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and issued a $84.00 target price on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Thursday. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $78.00 target price on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atlanticus has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $69.20.

Atlanticus Stock Up 6.2%

Shares of NASDAQ ATLC opened at $72.17 on Friday. Atlanticus has a one year low of $30.82 and a one year high of $75.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $58.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.68 and a beta of 2.00.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.21. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.51% and a return on equity of 24.20%. The business had revenue of $393.82 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $373.87 million. As a group, analysts expect that Atlanticus will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.39, for a total transaction of $124,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 61,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,811,529.88. The trade was a 3.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 50.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Man Group plc bought a new position in shares of Atlanticus during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $701,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 334.8% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,735 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 1,336 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 133.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 93,234 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,105,000 after purchasing an additional 53,312 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 205.5% in the 2nd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 14,683 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $804,000 after purchasing an additional 9,876 shares during the period. Finally, Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 9,344 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 537 shares during the period. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Atlanticus Company Profile

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation, a financial technology company, provides credit and related financial services and products to customers the United States. It operates in two segments, Credit as a Service, and Auto Finance. The Credit as a Service segment originates a range of consumer loan products, such as private label and general purpose credit cards originated by lenders through various channels, including retail and healthcare, direct mail solicitation, digital marketing, and partnerships with third parties; and offers credit to their customers for the purchase of various goods and services, including consumer electronics, furniture, elective medical procedures, healthcare, and home-improvements by partnering with retailers, healthcare providers, and other service providers.

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