Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Given “Market Perform” Rating at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating restated by equities research analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $52.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $45.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would indicate a potential upside of 9.99% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also commented on ATLC. B. Riley raised shares of Atlanticus to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JMP Securities upped their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $54.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atlanticus currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $61.00.

Atlanticus Stock Down 2.8 %

ATLC stock traded down $1.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $47.28. 11,195 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 62,266. The firm has a market cap of $696.79 million, a P/E ratio of 10.62 and a beta of 2.16. Atlanticus has a 1-year low of $23.09 and a 1-year high of $64.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $55.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.38.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 13th. The credit services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.19. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 25.14%. The business had revenue of $353.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $355.02 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Atlanticus will post 4.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Atlanticus

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATLC. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 229.4% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 728 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 393.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,283 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,820 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in Atlanticus by 158.8% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823 shares in the last quarter. Globeflex Capital L P acquired a new stake in Atlanticus in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $119,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atlanticus during the fourth quarter worth $129,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 14.15% of the company’s stock.

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.