Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Coverage Initiated at Stephens

Investment analysts at Stephens began coverage on shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage set an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price target on the credit services provider’s stock. Stephens’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 21.35% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on ATLC. BTIG Research upped their target price on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JMP Securities upped their price objective on Atlanticus from $39.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atlanticus presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.50.

Atlanticus Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of ATLC stock opened at $44.50 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $35.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.96. Atlanticus has a 1-year low of $23.09 and a 1-year high of $45.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $655.93 million, a PE ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $351.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Atlanticus will post 4.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.75, for a total transaction of $39,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 67,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,151.25. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.75, for a total value of $39,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 67,455 shares in the company, valued at $2,209,151.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.35, for a total value of $78,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 64,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,036,339.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 51.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atlanticus

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 65.5% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,324 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 920 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,127 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 7.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 15,094 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $447,000 after buying an additional 1,050 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 258,689 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,655,000 after buying an additional 2,453 shares in the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.