Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Sunday.

ATLC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. B. Riley Financial reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. Citizens Jmp boosted their price target on Atlanticus from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Atlanticus from $105.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Texas Capital raised Atlanticus to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Atlanticus from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.75.

Atlanticus Price Performance

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $96.40 on Friday. Atlanticus has a 12-month low of $45.74 and a 12-month high of $112.61. The company has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.39 and a beta of 2.11. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $87.72 and a 200-day moving average of $69.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The credit services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.54. Atlanticus had a net margin of 5.86% and a return on equity of 23.43%. The firm had revenue of $679.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $749.36 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Atlanticus will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atlanticus

In other news, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.20, for a total value of $1,022,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 46,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,729,100.60. This represents a 17.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO William Mccamey sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.01, for a total value of $1,030,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 127,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,124,504.10. The trade was a 7.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 75,000 shares of company stock valued at $7,868,627 over the last three months. 51.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atlanticus during the third quarter valued at about $47,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp bought a new stake in shares of Atlanticus during the first quarter worth about $71,000. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atlanticus in the first quarter valued at approximately $87,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 334.8% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,735 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 1,336 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in Atlanticus in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $105,000. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Atlanticus Company Profile

Atlanticus Holdings Corporation is a specialty financial services holding company that provides credit products and solutions to consumers across the United States. Through its subsidiaries, the company offers proprietary credit card programs, installment loan products and deposit accounts designed to serve customers who may have limited access to traditional credit. Atlanticus markets its offerings through a variety of channels, including direct‐to‐consumer online platforms, mail order, call centers and partnerships with retail and e-commerce businesses.

The company underwrites and services credit card portfolios under private-label and co-branded agreements, combining technology‐enabled underwriting with tailored customer service.