EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $20.50.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on EZPW. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, November 14th. JMP Securities set a $23.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $23.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of EZCORP from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 17th.

EZCORP Price Performance

EZPW opened at $20.25 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.36 and a beta of 0.52. EZCORP has a 12 month low of $11.60 and a 12 month high of $21.49. The company has a quick ratio of 4.37, a current ratio of 5.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $18.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.75.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.05. EZCORP had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 8.60%.The firm had revenue of $335.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $325.09 million. On average, research analysts expect that EZCORP will post 1.3 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of EZCORP

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EZPW. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of EZCORP during the second quarter worth about $7,104,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in EZCORP by 27.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,148,126 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,900,000 after acquiring an additional 465,462 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP boosted its position in EZCORP by 55.7% during the 1st quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 1,229,705 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $18,101,000 after acquiring an additional 439,937 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in shares of EZCORP by 70.2% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,063,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $14,764,000 after acquiring an additional 438,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of EZCORP by 28.5% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,975,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,612,000 after acquiring an additional 437,601 shares in the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.