EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Director Jason Kulas Sells 20,000 Shares

EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) Director Jason Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director directly owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

EZCORP Stock Performance

Shares of EZPW opened at $32.99 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.93 and a beta of 0.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $28.61 and a 200 day moving average of $23.57. EZCORP, Inc. has a 12 month low of $12.85 and a 12 month high of $37.13.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The credit services provider reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $434.90 million during the quarter. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 9.91%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EZPW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Monday. Stephens increased their price target on EZCORP from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Zacks Research raised EZCORP from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings raised EZCORP from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EZCORP

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EZPW. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in EZCORP by 21.8% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 134,056 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,402,000 after buying an additional 24,016 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in EZCORP by 62.8% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 27,064 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $687,000 after buying an additional 10,445 shares during the period. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in EZCORP during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in EZCORP by 3.8% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 30,205 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $767,000 after buying an additional 1,101 shares during the period. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp boosted its stake in EZCORP by 3.9% during the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 13,707 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $348,000 after buying an additional 510 shares during the period. 99.83% of the stock is 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.