Encore Capital Group

ECPG · Nasdaq · Financials · Financials, fiscal 2016 to 2025

ECPG · Last close · November 6, 2026

$114.14

Encore Capital Group's revenue rose 34.4% to $1.8 billion in fiscal 2025. Its operating margin was 35.4%, up from 11.9% a year earlier. Free cash flow was $127 million, down 0.2%. It paid out $90 million in dividends and buybacks, 71% of free cash flow. The diluted share count fell 1.4%.

ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP, INC. Latest fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 10-K filed February 25, 2026 · 0001084961-26-000009 Updated November 5, 2026

Revenue

$1.8B

34.4%

Operating margin

35.4%

23.5 pts

Net income

$257M

Free cash flow

$127M

0.2%

Return on capital

10.5%

7.5 pts

Market cap

$2.5B

Nov 6 close

P/E

7.3x

On $15.58 EPS, 4 qtrs

Operating margin is operating income as a share of revenue. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending. Return on capital is after-tax operating income as a share of the money invested in the business: debt plus equity, minus cash. Market cap is the last closing share price times the latest diluted share count, so it is approximate. P/E is the last close divided by diluted earnings per share over the last four quarters, or the latest fiscal year where the quarters aren't available; there is none when the company made a loss.

Charts show fiscal years, from the 10-K filings.

What Encore Capital Group does

Encore Capital buys portfolios of defaulted consumer debt and collects on them. Defaulted receivables are unpaid consumer obligations owed to banks, credit unions, consumer finance companies and retailers, and the company buys them at deep discounts to face value. It then works with the people who owe the money as they repay and recover financially.

It earns money from what it collects on the portfolios it buys, and in Europe also from servicing non-performing loans for the lenders that own them. In the United States it operates through Midland Credit Management (MCM). In Europe and the United Kingdom it operates through Cabot Credit Management (Cabot). Smaller operations in India and Mexico are not significant to its results.

The company says it plans to keep investing in portfolio buying and recovery in the United States and United Kingdom and to build its business in France and Spain. It is based in San Diego, California.

Its biggest risks, as it describes them

Weak economic conditions can make it harder for consumers to repay, hurting collections.
It may be unable to buy portfolios at good prices, or may lose supply if a main seller buys less.
Portfolios may turn out unprofitable, and its models of future cash flows may prove wrong.
A large part of its collections relies on lawsuits against consumers, which raises costs and legal exposure.
Rising consumer bankruptcies or changes in bankruptcy law could reduce what it collects.

From Encore Capital Group's annual report on Form 10-K, filed February 25, 2026, in our words; the 10-K has the full description and every risk factor. Updated with each new annual report.

Income statement

Revenue and net income

US$ billions, fiscal years; net losses in red. Revenue on the left axis, net income on the right; zero is the same line on both.

Revenue (left axis)Net income (right axis)

Gross profit, R&D and operating income

US$ billions, fiscal years. Gross profit is revenue minus the cost of what was sold; research and development is one of the costs paid from it; what remains after all operating costs is operating income. Losses in red.

Gross profitResearch and developmentOperating income

Margins

Percent of revenue

GrossOperatingNetFree cash flow

From fiscal 2016 to 2025, earnings per share grew 15.6% a year and net income 14.4% a year, as buybacks cut the share count by 9%.

Diluted earnings per share

US$ per share, fiscal years, restated for any stock splits; loss years in red.

Returns on capital

Return on capital and on equity

Percent. Return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business (debt plus equity, minus cash); return on equity is net income over shareholders' equity. Both use the average of opening and closing balances.

Return on capitalReturn on equity

Balance sheet

Cash and debt

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Debt includes finance leases.

Cash and short-term investmentsDebt

Assets, liabilities and equity

US$ billions, at each fiscal year end. Assets equal liabilities plus equity; negative equity in red.

Total assetsTotal liabilitiesShareholders' equity

Debt and liquidity ratios

Times. Debt to equity, current assets over current liabilities, and net debt over EBITDA (a full year's).

Debt to equityCurrent ratioNet debt to EBITDA

Five years at a glance

Fiscal year end	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Cash and short-term investments	190	144	158	200	157
Debt incl. finance leases	3,056	2,941	3,358	3,710	4,033
Net debt (negative means net cash)	2,866	2,797	3,200	3,510	3,877
Net debt to EBITDA	4.2x	5.5x	54.9x	18.5x	5.9x
Debt to equity	2.6x	2.5x	3.6x	4.8x	4.1x
Interest coverage	3.7x	3.0x	0.1x	0.6x	2.1x
Current ratio	—	—	—	—	—
Quick ratio	—	—	—	—	—

US$ millions unless stated, at each fiscal year end. Net debt to EBITDA is debt minus cash, divided by operating income before depreciation and amortization: roughly how many years of those earnings the net debt equals. Debt to equity is debt as a multiple of shareholders' equity. Interest coverage is operating income divided by interest expense. The current ratio is current assets over current liabilities; the quick ratio leaves out inventory.

Cash flow

Cash from operations, capital spending and free cash flow

US$ billions, fiscal years. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; negative years in red.

Cash from operationsCapital spendingFree cash flow

Stock-based compensation and buybacks

US$ billions, fiscal years. Shares paid to employees (stock-based compensation, a cost that uses no cash) against cash spent buying shares back. Buybacks that only match it leave the share count roughly where it was.

Stock-based compensationShare buybacks

Dividends and buybacks

US$ billions, cash paid in each fiscal year

DividendsShare buybacks

Diluted share count

Weighted-average diluted shares, millions

Projections

Project Encore Capital Group's revenue, net income and earnings per share five years ahead in a bull, a base and a bear case with your own figures, and see the share prices your P/E estimates give them, or value it with a discounted cash flow model. Every projected figure is yours: it is not a forecast of ours.

Open Encore Capital Group's projections

Insider trades

Over the 12 months between November 7, 2025 and November 6, 2026, no insider bought Encore Capital Group shares on the open market, and 4 insiders sold $1.8 million, all of it under trading plans set up in advance.

Buys and sells by month

US$ millions, open-market purchases (up) and sales (down) by officers, directors and 10% owners in each month.

BoughtSold

Date	Insider	Trade	Shares	Price	Value	Filing
Jun 11, 2026	John YungPresident, Intl. and Cabot	Sold plan	2,000	$80.51	$161,020	Form 4
Jun 10, 2026	John YungPresident, Intl. and Cabot	Sold plan	2,000	$82.08	$164,160	Form 4
Jun 10, 2026	Andrew Eric AschSVP, General Counsel	Sold plan	774	$82.08	$63,530	Form 4
Jun 9, 2026	Andrew Eric AschSVP, General Counsel	Sold plan	8,311	$81.47	$677,111	Form 4
Mar 3, 2026	Ryan B BellPresident, Mcm	Sold plan	260	$68.62	$17,841	Form 4
Mar 2, 2026	Ryan B BellPresident, Mcm	Sold plan	7,240	$69.04	$499,844	Form 4
Dec 10, 2025	Ryan B BellPresident, Mcm	Sold plan	2,500	$55.00	$137,500	Form 4
Dec 3, 2025	Laura OlleDirector	Sold plan	1,423	$52.79	$75,120	Form 4
Nov 26, 2025	John YungPresident, Intl. and Cabot	Sold plan	1,000	$52.00	$52,000	Form 4

Open-market purchases and sales by officers, directors and 10% owners, from their Form 4 filings with the SEC: one row per person, day and filing, at the day's average price. Grants, option exercises and shares withheld for tax aren't counted. Insiders buy and sell for many reasons, such as taxes, spreading their savings or a plan set up months earlier, so a trade on its own says little about where a company is heading. For information only, not investment advice. Insider trades at all companies

Indicators

Four widely used measures, worked out from the company's filings. The cutoffs are the ones their authors or users go by, not a verdict of ours.

Indicator	FY23	FY24	FY25
Piotroski F-score	—	—	—
Rule of 40	−2.1%	17.3%	41.5%
Altman Z''	—	—	—
Accruals ratio	−7.9%	−6.3%	2.0%

Piotroski F-score: how many of nine simple tests of profitability, funding and efficiency the company passed in the year (Piotroski, 2000); 8 or 9 is strong, 0 to 2 weak. Rule of 40: revenue growth plus free cash flow margin; software investors treat 40% or more as the bar. Altman Z'': working capital, retained earnings, operating income and equity weighed against assets and liabilities (Altman, 1995); Altman puts above 2.6 in the safe zone and below 1.1 in the distress zone. Accruals ratio: net income minus cash from operations, over average total assets; lower means profit is backed by cash.

The nine F-score tests

Test	FY23	FY24	FY25
Net income is positive	Fail	Fail	Pass
Cash from operations is positive	Pass	Pass	Pass
Return on assets rose	Fail	Pass	Pass
Cash from operations exceeds net income	Pass	Pass	Fail
Debt fell relative to assets	Fail	Fail	Fail
Current ratio rose	—	—	—
Share count didn't rise	Pass	Fail	Pass
Gross margin rose	—	—	—
Revenue rose relative to assets	Fail	Pass	Pass
F-score	—	—	—

Companies that report no gross profit are scored on the other eight.

Compare

Put Encore Capital Group side by side with any other company we cover: revenue, growth, margins, cash flow and returns, with ten years of charts.

Similar companies

Company	Year	Revenue growth	Operating margin	Free cash flow margin	Return on capital	Net debt to EBITDA	F-score	Compare
Encore Capital Group	FY25	34.4%	35.4%	7.2%	10.5%	5.9x	—
PROG	FY25	0.4%	8.6%	13.5%	13.2%	1.2x	—	Compare
EZCORP	FY25	9.7%	11.7%	8.7%	10.9%	0.3x	7	Compare
Enova International	FY25	18.6%	23.5%	56.2%	10.9%	5.7x	—	Compare
FirstCash	FY25	8.0%	—	14.5%	10.7%	3.3x	8	Compare

Each company's latest fiscal year. Fiscal years end in different months, so the periods don't line up exactly. Free cash flow margin is free cash flow as a share of revenue. Net debt to EBITDA is explained under the balance sheet, and the F-score under Indicators.

10 years of figures

Fiscal year	FY16	FY17	FY18	FY19	FY20	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Income statement
Revenue	1,113	1,146	1,321	1,406	1,501	1,614	1,398	1,223	1,316	1,769
Revenue growth	−1.5%	2.9%	15.2%	6.5%	6.8%	7.5%	−13.4%	−12.6%	7.7%	34.4%
Gross profit	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Research and development	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating income	242	324	405	446	534	633	462	16	157	627
Net income	77	83	116	168	212	351	195	−206	−139	257
Diluted EPS (US$)	2.96	3.15	4.06	5.33	6.68	11.26	7.46	−8.72	−5.83	10.91
Diluted shares (millions)	26	26	29	32	32	31	26	24	24	24
Cash flow
Cash from operations	130	124	187	245	313	303	211	153	156	153
Capital expenditure	32	28	68	40	35	33	37	25	29	26
Free cash flow	99	96	119	205	278	270	173	128	127	127
Dividends paid	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Share buybacks	0	0	0	0	0	391	87	0	0	90
Acquisitions	1	96	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stock-based compensation	13	10	13	13	17	18	15	14	14	18
Balance sheet at fiscal year end
Cash and short-term investments	150	212	157	192	189	190	144	158	200	157
Debt incl. finance leases	2,864	3,528	3,576	3,586	3,374	3,056	2,941	3,358	3,710	4,033
Total assets	3,670	4,491	4,632	4,910	4,864	4,608	4,508	4,630	4,790	5,340
Total liabilities	3,070	3,767	3,812	3,884	3,644	3,423	3,329	3,694	4,022	4,363
Shareholders' equity	559	582	818	1,022	1,218	1,185	1,180	936	767	977
Margins and ratios
Gross margin	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Operating margin	21.7%	28.3%	30.7%	31.8%	35.5%	39.2%	33.0%	1.4%	11.9%	35.4%
Net margin	6.9%	7.3%	8.8%	11.9%	14.1%	21.7%	13.9%	−16.9%	−10.6%	14.5%
Free cash flow margin	8.9%	8.3%	9.0%	14.6%	18.5%	16.7%	12.4%	10.5%	9.7%	7.2%
Rule of 40 (growth + FCF margin)	7.4%	11.3%	24.3%	21.1%	25.3%	24.2%	−1.0%	−2.1%	17.3%	41.5%
Return on capital	3.5%	5.5%	7.0%	8.7%	9.1%	12.1%	7.2%	0.3%	3.0%	10.5%
Return on equity	13.2%	14.6%	16.6%	18.2%	18.9%	29.2%	16.4%	−19.5%	−16.3%	29.4%
Return on assets	1.9%	2.0%	2.5%	3.5%	4.3%	7.4%	4.3%	−4.5%	−3.0%	5.1%
Net debt to EBITDA	9.8x	9.1x	7.7x	7.0x	5.5x	4.2x	5.5x	54.9x	18.5x	5.9x

US$ millions unless stated. Where a later 10-K restated a year, the latest filed figure is shown. Download all figures (CSV, US$ millions)

Source: Encore Capital Group's Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR. For information only, not investment advice. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with Encore Capital Group.