Wasatch Advisors LP Sells 979,181 Shares of EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

Wasatch Advisors LP reduced its holdings in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 57.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 713,934 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 979,181 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP owned about 1.16% of EZCORP worth $18,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EZPW. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in EZCORP by 23.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 19,375 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 3,705 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of EZCORP in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,646,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 47.9% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 183,291 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,544,000 after buying an additional 59,339 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 73,064 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,014,000 after buying an additional 648 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,718,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings raised EZCORP from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Citigroup reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen cut EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of EZCORP from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In other news, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total transaction of $671,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 172,948 shares in the company, valued at $5,804,134.88. The trade was a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $320,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 217,543 shares in the company, valued at $6,961,376. This trade represents a 4.39% 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. Insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

EZCORP Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of EZPW opened at $32.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.67 and a beta of 0.63. EZCORP, Inc. has a one year low of $13.07 and a one year high of $37.13. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $26.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 4.71 and a quick ratio of 3.52.

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

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.