EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Shares Down 8.1% – What’s Next?

EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW)’s stock price dropped 8.1% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $30.44 and last traded at $29.9160. 390,591 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 57% from the average session volume of 902,496 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.56.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on EZPW shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on EZCORP from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 price target on EZCORP in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Zacks Research cut EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen raised EZCORP from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Citizens Jmp boosted their price objective on EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $38.80.

EZCORP Trading Down 2.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 4.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.05 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $32.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.45.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The credit services provider reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $434.90 million for the quarter. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 9.91%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total value of $671,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,804,134.88. This trade represents a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.54, for a total value of $355,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 207,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,376,078.22. The trade was a 4.60% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock worth $1,346,600. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EZPW. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in EZCORP in the second quarter worth about $31,000. KBC Group NV bought a new position in EZCORP in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in EZCORP by 533.5% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,667 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 2,246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in EZCORP by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,146 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 724 shares during the period. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About EZCORP

EZCORP, Inc is a specialty consumer finance company that provides pawn loans and retail merchandise programs primarily through its EZPAWN and Cash Converters brands. The company offers collateral-based loans secured principally by jewelry, electronics, musical instruments and other personal items, alongside check-cashing, money-transfer and bill-payment services. In addition to its pawn lending operations, EZCORP acquires previously pawned or consumer merchandise for resale through its “Sell-It-Now” platform and retail storefronts.

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, EZCORP operates in two principal geographic markets: the United States and Mexico.