Encore Capital Group, Inc. ECPG shares have gained 24.3% since it reported first-quarter 2025 results on May 7. The strong quarterly results benefited from rising collections and strong portfolio purchasing. However, higher expenses partially offset the upsides.

ECPG reported first-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.93, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 55.7%. The bottom line reported an improvement from 95 cents per share in the prior year.

ECPG's revenues rose 19.6% year over year to $392.8 million. Also, the top line beat the consensus mark by 5.5%.

Encore Capital Group Inc Price, Consensus and EPS SurpriseEncore Capital Group Inc Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Encore Capital Group Inc price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Encore Capital Group Inc Quote

ECPG’s Operational Update

Total debt purchasing revenues rose 20.8% year over year in the quarter under review to $366.7 million. Servicing revenues increased 10.6% in the first quarter of 2025 to $22.5 million and beat the consensus mark of $20 million.

Collections grew 18% year over year to $604.8 million and also beat the consensus mark of $583.3 million. Strong portfolio purchasing in the United States in the past couple of years and a stable collections environment in its key markets benefited the metric.

Total operating expenses of $263.4 million rose 8% year over year due to an increase in salaries and employee benefits, the cost of legal collections, general and administrative expenses and other operating expenses.

Interest expenses increased 26.5% year over year to $70.5 million in the quarter under review. Encore Capital’s net income of $46.8 million increased 101% year over year.

Global portfolio purchases of $367.9 million rose from $295.7 million a year ago. It deployed $316.4 million in the United States and the rest in Europe. (Find the latest earnings estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.)

Financial Position (As of March 31, 2025)

Encore Capital exited the first quarter with total assets of $5 billion, higher than $4.8 billion at 2024-end. Cash and cash equivalents amounted to $187.1 million in the first quarter, lower than $199.9 million at 2024-end.

Borrowings increased to $3.8 billion from $3.7 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025. Total liabilities of $4.2 billion at the first-quarter end were higher than $4 billion at 2024-end. Total equity increased to $819.1 million from $767.3 million at 2024-end.

Net cash provided by operating activities decreased 11.2% year over year in the first quarter of 2025 to $45.3 million.

ECPG’s Share Repurchase Update

Encore Capital bought back $10 million worth of shares in the first quarter of 2025.

Story Continues

ECPG Reaffirms 2025 Guidance

Management still expects portfolio purchasing to surpass the 2024 figure of $1.35 billion in 2025 and collections to grow by around 11% to $2.4 billion in 2025.

ECPG’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

ECPG currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader Finance space are Root Inc. ROOT, EverQuote Inc. EVER and Heritage Insurance Holdings Inc. HRTG, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Root’s current-year earnings of $1.11 per share has witnessed one upward revision in the past week against none in the opposite direction. Root beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 208.9%. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues is pegged at $1.4 billion, implying 17.3% year-over-year growth.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EverQuote’s current-year earnings is pegged at $1.17 per share. EverQuote beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 122.6%. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues is pegged at $640.3 million, suggesting 28% year-over-year growth.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Heritage Insurance’s current-year earnings of $3.25 per share has witnessed two upward revisions in the past week against no movement in the opposite direction. Heritage Insurance beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 363.2%. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues is pegged at $854.9 million, calling for 4.6% year-over-year growth.

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