Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Boosts Stake in EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 10.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 193,627 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,943 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.31% of EZCORP worth $4,914,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in EZCORP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of EZCORP by 533.5% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,667 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 2,246 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,146 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 724 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA acquired a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the first quarter worth $233,000. Finally, Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in EZCORP in the 4th quarter valued at $206,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on EZPW shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, May 11th. Citizens Jmp boosted their target price on EZCORP from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 price target on EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at EZCORP

In other news, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total transaction of $671,200.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,804,134.88. The trade was a 10.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $320,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 217,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,961,376. The trade was a 4.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

EZCORP Stock Performance

Shares of EZPW stock opened at $35.59 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.34 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 4.71, a quick ratio of 3.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $32.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $27.16. EZCORP, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.07 and a twelve month high of $37.13.

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

About EZCORP

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.