Insider Selling: Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) Director Sells 359 Shares of Stock

Atlanticus Holdings Co. (NASDAQ:ATLC) Director Denise M. Harrod sold 359 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.00, for a total transaction of $17,591.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $259,700. This represents a 6.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Atlanticus Stock Up 1.5 %

Atlanticus stock opened at $51.47 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $37.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.86. The company has a market cap of $758.67 million, a PE ratio of 11.57 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Atlanticus Holdings Co. has a 1-year low of $23.09 and a 1-year high of $53.29.

Atlanticus (NASDAQ:ATLC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The credit services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.04. Atlanticus had a return on equity of 25.14% and a net margin of 8.39%. The business had revenue of $351.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $326.64 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Atlanticus Holdings Co. will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ATLC. BTIG Research upped their target price on Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of Atlanticus from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of Atlanticus from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Stephens began 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $48.75.

Institutional Trading of Atlanticus

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC raised its position 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 worth $80,000 after buying an additional 1,820 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Atlanticus by 65.5% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,324 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 920 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Atlanticus by 158.8% in 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 during the period. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake 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 valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings 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 period. 14.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.