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

Shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $38.80.

EZPW has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded EZCORP from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Zacks Research cut EZCORP from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 target price on EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th.

EZCORP Stock Down 2.0%

EZPW opened at $29.18 on Friday. EZCORP has a 12 month low of $15.12 and a 12 month high of $37.13. The company has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a PE ratio of 14.74 and a beta of 0.66. 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 50 day moving average of $31.91 and a 200 day moving average of $29.04.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $408.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $425.83 million. EZCORP had a net margin of 9.97% and a return on equity of 14.28%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that EZCORP will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.54, for a total value of $355,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 207,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,376,078.22. This trade represents a 4.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jason A. Kulas sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total transaction of $671,200.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 172,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,804,134.88. This represents a 10.37% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,346,600 over the last 90 days. 2.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of EZPW. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of EZCORP by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,563,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $69,209,000 after purchasing an additional 84,566 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position 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 worth $61,518,000 after buying an additional 1,019,622 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in EZCORP by 5.4% during the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 2,321,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,217,000 after buying an additional 118,641 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake 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 valued at $37,612,000 after buying an additional 437,601 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in EZCORP by 8.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,246,427 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $23,732,000 after buying an additional 99,059 shares in the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.