Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $57.41 and last traded at $57.41, with a volume of 2473 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $55.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATLC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. B. Riley boosted 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. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Atlanticus in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, JMP Securities raised their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

Atlanticus Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $39.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.47. The company has a market capitalization of $843.42 million, a PE ratio of 12.86 and a beta of 1.92.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $351.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $326.64 million. Atlanticus had a net margin of 8.39% and a return on equity of 25.14%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atlanticus

In other Atlanticus news, Director Deal W. Hudson sold 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.75, for a total value of $39,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 67,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,209,151.25. This represents a 1.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Mitchell Saunders sold 16,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.55, for a total value of $889,022.20. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 50,973 shares in the company, valued at $2,831,550.15. This trade represents a 23.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,204 shares of company stock worth $1,080,197. 51.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATLC. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in Atlanticus in the 3rd quarter worth $1,654,000. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atlanticus during the third quarter worth about $313,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Atlanticus by 285.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,218 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 6,087 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Atlanticus by 1.0% in the 1st 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. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Atlanticus by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 122,501 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,298,000 after buying an additional 2,348 shares during the last quarter. 14.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.