World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

World Acceptance Corporation (NASDAQ:WRLD) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday. The stock had previously closed at $169.65, but opened at $178.32. World Acceptance shares last traded at $169.75, with a volume of 34,916 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WRLD shares. Zacks Research raised shares of World Acceptance to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of World Acceptance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of World Acceptance in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

World Acceptance Trading Down 1.5%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $180.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $175.87. The company has a market cap of $778.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.61 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 13.49 and a current ratio of 13.49.

World Acceptance (NASDAQ:WRLD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The credit services provider reported $2.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $1.54. The business had revenue of $127.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $143.90 million. World Acceptance had a net margin of 6.71% and a return on equity of 12.13%. Research analysts anticipate that World Acceptance Corporation will post 13.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at World Acceptance

In other news, insider John L. Calmes, Jr. sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $186.00, for a total value of $372,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 48,334 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,990,124. This trade represents a 3.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Prescott General Partners Llc sold 133,199 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.69, for a total value of $25,000,120.31. Following the transaction, the insider owned 31,148 shares in the company, valued at $5,846,168.12. This represents a 81.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 137,199 shares of company stock worth $25,753,600 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 38.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of World Acceptance

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WRLD. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of World Acceptance by 4.9% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 48,800 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,590,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of World Acceptance by 97.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 20,545 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,774,000 after purchasing an additional 10,140 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of World Acceptance during the second quarter worth $4,577,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of World Acceptance by 8.2% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 13,218 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,785,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in shares of World Acceptance by 33.7% during the first quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 9,153 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 2,306 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.63% of the company’s stock.

World Acceptance Company Profile

World Acceptance Corporation is a consumer finance company that provides small-dollar personal installment loans and related financial services through its World Finance branch network and online channels. The company primarily serves consumers who may have limited access to traditional bank credit.

Its products and services generally include personal loans, tax return preparation and filing, and certain ancillary financial products. Loan proceeds may be used for expenses such as household needs, medical bills, automobile repairs, or other personal obligations, subject to applicable lending requirements.

Founded in 1962, World Acceptance is headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina.