Critical Survey: CarePayment Technologies (OTCMKTS:CPYT) versus Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG)

Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ:ECPG) and CarePayment Technologies (OTCMKTS:CPYT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Encore Capital Group and CarePayment Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Encore Capital Group	0	0	3	1	3.25
CarePayment Technologies	0	0	0	0	0.00

Encore Capital Group presently has a consensus target price of $62.33, indicating a potential upside of 27.42%. Given Encore Capital Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Encore Capital Group is more favorable than CarePayment Technologies.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Encore Capital Group and CarePayment Technologies”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Encore Capital Group	$1.22 billion	0.95	-$206.49 million	($7.85)	-6.23
CarePayment Technologies	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

CarePayment Technologies has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Encore Capital Group.

Profitability

This table compares Encore Capital Group and CarePayment Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Encore Capital Group	-13.91%	12.70%	2.61%
CarePayment Technologies	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Encore Capital Group beats CarePayment Technologies on 7 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Encore Capital Group

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. It is also involved in the provision of early stage collection, business process outsourcing, and contingent collection services. In addition, the company engages in debt servicing and other portfolio management services to credit originator for non-performing loans. Further, it offers credit management services. Encore Capital Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

About CarePayment Technologies

CarePayment Technologies, Inc. provides accounts receivable services in the United States. It offers services for accounts receivables generated by healthcare providers in connection with providing healthcare services to their patients under the CarePayment brand name. The company was formerly known as microHelix, Inc. CarePayment Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is based in Lake Oswego, Oregon.