Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Purchases 2,618 Shares of Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in Encore Capital Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ECPG) by 34.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,183 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 2,618 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Encore Capital Group were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ECPG. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Encore Capital Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $453,000. Sheets Smith Wealth Management increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 14,043 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 78.2% during the 3rd quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH now owns 49,081 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,344,000 after purchasing an additional 21,545 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in Encore Capital Group by 30.4% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,705 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 1,330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund bought a new position in Encore Capital Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $639,000.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ryan B. Bell sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $275,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 42,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,120,200. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on ECPG shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Encore Capital Group in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet cut Encore Capital Group from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th.

Encore Capital Group Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ ECPG opened at $41.63 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $45.92 and a 200-day moving average of $46.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. Encore Capital Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.74 and a fifty-two week high of $54.73.

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 21st. The asset manager reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $277.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $330.77 million. Encore Capital Group had a positive return on equity of 9.46% and a negative net margin of 16.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Encore Capital Group, Inc. will post 5.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.