Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Downgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Wednesday.

Separately, JMP Securities restated a market outperform rating and set a $39.00 price objective on shares of Atlanticus in a report on Wednesday, April 17th.

Atlanticus Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ATLC opened at $26.76 on Wednesday. Atlanticus has a 12 month low of $23.20 and a 12 month high of $43.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.72. The firm has a market cap of $396.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.33 and a beta of 1.84.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.14. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 27.93%. The business had revenue of $309.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $304.68 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Atlanticus will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atlanticus

In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total value of $61,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 69,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,130,577.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.50, for a total value of $61,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 69,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,130,577.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Frank J. Hanna III bought 263,432 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $28.21 per share, with a total value of $7,431,416.72. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 263,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,431,416.72. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 52.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 602,272 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,290,000 after acquiring an additional 7,234 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 50,325 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 26,040 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 1,285 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 59.9% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 22,176 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 8,305 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in shares of Atlanticus by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 12,700 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $385,000 after acquiring an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.