EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Raised to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (a-)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, July 6th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Citizens Jmp lifted their price objective on shares of EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.80.

EZCORP Trading Down 2.1%

NASDAQ:EZPW opened at $29.54 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.45. The company has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.05 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 4.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. EZCORP has a 52-week low of $13.07 and a 52-week high of $37.13.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 9.91%.The company had revenue of $434.90 million during the quarter. On average, research analysts anticipate that EZCORP will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In related news, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total value of $671,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 172,948 shares in the company, valued at $5,804,134.88. This trade represents a 10.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the business’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 transaction, the director directly owned 207,543 shares in the company, valued at $7,376,078.22. This represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,346,600 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of EZCORP

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in EZPW. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of 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. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its holdings in EZCORP by 70.2% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,063,677 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $14,764,000 after purchasing an additional 438,542 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in EZCORP by 28.5% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,975,421 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,612,000 after purchasing an additional 437,601 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in EZCORP by 89.2% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 785,131 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $15,247,000 after purchasing an additional 370,103 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in EZCORP by 121.5% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 644,120 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $12,509,000 after purchasing an additional 353,327 shares in 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.