EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $38.80.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on EZPW shares. Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th.

EZCORP Stock Performance

NASDAQ EZPW opened at $34.07 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52 and a beta of 0.64. EZCORP has a 12 month low of $13.07 and a 12 month high of $37.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 4.71 and a quick ratio of 3.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $32.82 and a 200-day moving average of $27.67.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.54, for a total transaction of $355,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 207,543 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,376,078.22. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,804,134.88. The trade was a 10.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 40,000 shares of company stock worth $1,346,600 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EZPW. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of EZCORP by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,563,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $69,209,000 after buying an additional 84,566 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in EZCORP by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 3,167,748 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $61,518,000 after acquiring an additional 1,019,622 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in EZCORP by 5.4% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,321,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,217,000 after acquiring an additional 118,641 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in EZCORP by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,975,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $37,612,000 after acquiring an additional 437,601 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in EZCORP by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,246,427 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,732,000 after acquiring an additional 99,059 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

EZCORP Company Profile

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.