PRA Group price target lowered to $23 from $30 at Citizens JMP

Citizens JMP lowered the firm’s price target on PRA Group (PRAA) to $23 from $30 and keeps an Outperform rating on the shares. PRA Group’s positive operational and directional trends were very similar in Q1 to what has been seen over the past year, including the strong purchase volumes, notable strength in Europe, double-digit collections and cash earnings growth, and improving margins, but lower-than-forecast U.S. collections drove a material earnings shortfall, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm still believes that the company is enjoying a “sweet spot” in the purchasing and collections cycle characterized by the elevated supply of charge-offs, stable employment and collections backdrop, weakened competition overseas, and excess funding.