EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Shares Sold by First Wilshire Securities Management Inc.

First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,258,817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 52,673 shares during the quarter. EZCORP accounts for approximately 8.5% of First Wilshire Securities Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. owned about 3.71% of EZCORP worth $31,352,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EZPW. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in EZCORP in the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP in the first quarter valued at $91,000. Quarry LP grew its holdings in EZCORP by 652.4% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,622 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in EZCORP during the 2nd quarter valued at $139,000. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in EZCORP during the 1st quarter worth $149,000. 99.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

EZCORP Stock Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:EZPW opened at $20.14 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 4.37 and a current ratio of 5.61. The company has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28 and a beta of 0.52. EZCORP, Inc. has a one year low of $11.56 and a one year high of $20.29. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.14.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $335.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $325.09 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 8.60%. Sell-side analysts predict that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Matthew W. Appel sold 9,038 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.02, for a total transaction of $162,864.76. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 133,371 shares in the company, valued at $2,403,345.42. This trade represents a 6.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on EZPW. JMP Securities set a $23.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, November 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on EZCORP in a report on Monday, November 3rd. They set a “market outperform” rating and a $23.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on EZCORP from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.50.

EZCORP Profile

EZCORP, Inc provides pawn services in the United States and Latin America. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Pawn, Latin America Pawn, and Other Investments. The company offers pawn loans collateralized by tangible personal property, jewelry, consumer electronics, tools, sporting goods, and musical instruments.