EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Stock: Hennessy Advisors Inc. Trims Holdings

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 8.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 257,700 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 25,100 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.42% of EZCORP worth $7,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the second quarter worth $31,000. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of EZCORP by 546.4% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,183 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of EZCORP by 4,125.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,521 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,485 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in EZCORP during the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in EZCORP by 227.8% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,865 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 1,296 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut EZCORP from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of EZCORP from $40.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on EZCORP from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $39.00.

EZCORP Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ EZPW opened at $28.11 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 14.20 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 3.45, a current ratio of 4.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. EZCORP, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.50 and a twelve month high of $37.13. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.50.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.06. EZCORP had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 13.99%. The business had revenue of $408.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $425.83 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2.00 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ellen Bryant sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.77, for a total value of $1,043,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 117,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,095,419.22. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

EZCORP Profile

EZCORP, Inc is a financial services and retail company that provides pawn loans and sells pre-owned merchandise. Through its pawn stores, the company offers short-term, collateral-based loans secured by personal property such as jewelry, electronics, tools and other consumer goods.

In addition to lending, EZCORP purchases and resells previously owned merchandise, giving customers access to used jewelry, electronics, tools, sporting goods and other products. Its retail operations also support the company’s pawn-lending model by providing a sales channel for collateral that is not redeemed.

EZCORP serves customers through stores operating under brands that include EZPAWN and Value Pawn in the United States, as well as related brands in Latin American markets.