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Side-by-side financial comparison of ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC (ECPG) and E.W. SCRIPPS Co (SSP). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
E.W. SCRIPPS Co is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($516.9M vs $473.6M, roughly 1.1× ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC). ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC runs the higher net margin — 16.2% vs -0.3%, a 16.5% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (78.3% vs -1.4%). Over the past eight quarters, ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC's revenue compounded faster (20.1% CAGR vs -5.1%).
Encore Capital Group, Inc. is a publicly traded debt buyer based in the United States. The company is headquartered in San Diego, and operates throughout the United States. The firm is a publicly traded NASDAQ Global Select company (ECPG), a component stock of the Russell 2000, the S&P SmallCap 600, and the Wilshire 4500.
The E. W. Scripps Company, also known as Scripps, is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglomerate. The company is headquartered at the Scripps Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its corporate motto is "Give light and the people will find their own way", which is symbolized by the media empire's longtime lighthouse logo.
ECPG vs SSP — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $473.6M | $516.9M |
| Net Profit | $76.7M | $-1.8M |
| Gross Margin | — | — |
| Operating Margin | 36.6% | 4.8% |
| Net Margin | 16.2% | -0.3% |
| Revenue YoY | 78.3% | -1.4% |
| Net Profit YoY | — | — |
| EPS (diluted) | $3.32 | — |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | — | $516.9M | ||
| Q4 25 | $473.6M | $560.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $460.4M | $525.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $442.1M | $540.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $392.8M | $524.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $265.6M | $728.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $367.1M | $646.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $355.3M | $573.6M |
| Q1 26 | — | $-1.8M | ||
| Q4 25 | $76.7M | $-28.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $74.7M | $-33.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $58.7M | $-36.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $46.8M | $-3.5M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $95.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $30.6M | $47.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $32.2M | $1.4M |
| Q1 26 | — | 4.8% | ||
| Q4 25 | 36.6% | 7.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 37.6% | 7.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 34.1% | 14.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 32.9% | 5.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 26.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | 28.9% | 18.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 28.7% | 9.7% |
| Q1 26 | — | -0.3% | ||
| Q4 25 | 16.2% | -5.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 16.2% | -6.3% | ||
| Q2 25 | 13.3% | -6.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 11.9% | -0.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 13.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 8.3% | 7.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 9.1% | 0.2% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $3.32 | $-0.51 | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.17 | $-0.55 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.49 | $-0.59 | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.93 | $-0.22 | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $0.94 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.26 | $0.37 | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.34 | $-0.15 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $156.8M | $83.7M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $4.0B | $0 |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $976.8M | $1.2B |
| Total Assets | $5.3B | $4.9B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 4.13× | 0.00× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | $83.7M | ||
| Q4 25 | $156.8M | $27.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $172.5M | $54.7M | ||
| Q2 25 | $172.9M | $31.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $187.1M | $24.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $199.9M | $23.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $247.4M | $34.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $250.6M | $26.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | $0 | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.0B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.7B | $2.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — |
| Q1 26 | — | $1.2B | ||
| Q4 25 | $976.8M | $1.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $952.9M | $1.3B | ||
| Q2 25 | $896.0M | $1.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $819.1M | $1.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $767.3M | $1.3B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.0B | $1.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $988.1M | $1.2B |
| Q1 26 | — | $4.9B | ||
| Q4 25 | $5.3B | $5.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $5.3B | $5.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $5.2B | $5.1B | ||
| Q1 25 | $5.0B | $5.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.8B | $5.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $5.0B | $5.3B | ||
| Q2 24 | $4.8B | $5.3B |
| Q1 26 | — | 0.00× | ||
| Q4 25 | 4.13× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 4.83× | 1.98× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $153.2M | — |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $126.9M | — |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 26.8% | — |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 5.5% | 0.4% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 2.00× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $244.0M | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $153.2M | $45.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $81.6M | $21.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.5M | $-10.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $45.3M | $-3.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $156.2M | $153.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $45.9M | $140.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $35.7M | $26.4M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $126.9M | $31.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $75.6M | $6.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.2M | $-22.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $38.3M | $-8.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $127.2M | $146.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $39.7M | $127.4M | ||
| Q2 24 | $28.3M | $2.8M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 26.8% | 5.6% | ||
| Q3 25 | 16.4% | 1.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.7% | -4.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 9.7% | -1.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 47.9% | 20.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 10.8% | 19.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 8.0% | 0.5% |
| Q1 26 | — | 0.4% | ||
| Q4 25 | 5.5% | 2.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.3% | 2.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.4% | 2.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.8% | 1.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 10.9% | 0.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.7% | 2.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.1% | 4.1% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 2.00× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.09× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.16× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.97× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 1.61× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.50× | 2.94× | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.11× | 18.45× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
ECPG
Segment breakdown not available.
SSP
| Local Media | $341.6M | 66% |
| Scripps Networks | $176.0M | 34% |
