Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) Short Interest Update

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 249,200 shares, a decrease of 14.0% from the November 15th total of 289,700 shares. Currently, 5.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 28,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 8.7 days.

Atlanticus Stock Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ ATLC traded down $0.41 on Friday, reaching $60.39. 44,405 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 20,523. 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 company has a fifty day moving average price of $46.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.82. The company has a market cap of $890.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.57 and a beta of 2.05. Atlanticus has a 12 month low of $23.09 and a 12 month high of $64.70.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $351.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 25.14%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Atlanticus will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ATLC. JMP Securities increased their price objective 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. Stephens started coverage on Atlanticus in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, B. Riley increased their target price on Atlanticus from $50.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.20.

Insider Transactions at Atlanticus

In other news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now directly owns 64,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,036,339.25. This trade represents a 3.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Denise M. Harrod sold 1,141 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at approximately $277,291. This represents a 16.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,004 shares of company stock valued at $1,040,897 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 51.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATLC. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 2,453 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 8,127 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its stake in shares of Atlanticus by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 8,310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Atlanticus by 5.0% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,978 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Atlanticus by 158.8% in the third 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 owned by 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.