Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Raised to Strong-Buy at B. Riley

B. Riley upgraded shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. Stephens assumed coverage on Atlanticus in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $54.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.20.

Atlanticus Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ATLC opened at $55.98 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $54.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $825.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 2.05. Atlanticus has a 12 month low of $23.09 and a 12 month high of $64.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. The company had revenue of $351.22 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $326.64 million. Analysts expect that Atlanticus will post 4.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Atlanticus

In related news, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $55,909.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,659 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $277,291. This trade represents a 16.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 16,004 shares of Atlanticus stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.55, for a total value of $889,022.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 50,973 shares in the company, valued at $2,831,550.15. This represents a 23.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 17,504 shares of company stock valued at $962,522 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 51.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in Atlanticus by 9.3% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,127 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its position in Atlanticus by 9.3% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 5.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,978 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 804 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Atlanticus by 393.1% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 1,820 shares during the period. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% in the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,823 shares in the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Atlanticus

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.