PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Separately, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of PRA Group in a research note on Tuesday.

PRA Group Trading Up 1.1 %

PRA Group stock traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $25.31. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 213,492 shares, compared to its average volume of 211,606. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $24.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $996.00 million, a PE ratio of -11.88 and a beta of 1.47. PRA Group has a 1 year low of $11.85 and a 1 year high of $31.43.

PRA Group (NASDAQ:PRAA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The business services provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.15) by $0.24. The business had revenue of $255.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $233.37 million. PRA Group had a negative return on equity of 6.82% and a negative net margin of 10.40%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 64.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($1.50) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that PRA Group will post 0.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Vikram A. Atal sold 5,830 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.39, for a total transaction of $142,193.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 155,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,795,693.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PRAA. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in PRA Group by 3,462.8% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 963,521 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,509,000 after purchasing an additional 936,477 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of PRA Group by 12.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,884,085 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $74,613,000 after buying an additional 425,505 shares during the period. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. raised its holdings in PRA Group by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 1,621,215 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,476,000 after acquiring an additional 237,800 shares in the last quarter. Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in PRA Group by 192.2% in the fourth quarter. Wilbanks Smith & Thomas Asset Management LLC now owns 293,583 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $7,692,000 after acquiring an additional 193,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in PRA Group by 42.3% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 450,193 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,648,000 after acquiring an additional 133,774 shares during the last quarter. 97.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PRA Group

PRA Group, Inc, a financial and business services company, engages in the purchase, collection, and management of portfolios of nonperforming loans worldwide. It is involved in the purchase of accounts that are primarily the unpaid obligations of individuals owed to credit originators, which include banks and other types of consumer, retail, and auto finance companies.