EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately bullish: Six of eight analysts rate EZCORP a “buy” and two rate it a “hold,” with an average 12-month price target of $38.80 versus the reported $32.32 opening price.
• EZCORP reported quarterly EPS of $0.47, exceeding the $0.41 consensus estimate, although revenue of $408.4 million fell short of the $425.83 million forecast.
• Insiders sold 50,000 shares worth approximately $1.72 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors own a substantial 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $38.80.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded EZCORP from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Roth Capital reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, May 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of EZCORP from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th.

EZCORP Price Performance

NASDAQ EZPW opened at $32.32 on Tuesday. EZCORP has a 1 year low of $16.31 and a 1 year high of $37.13. The business's fifty day moving average is $31.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.32 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 3.45 and a current ratio of 4.81.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The credit services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $408.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $425.83 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.99% and a net margin of 9.97%. On average, research analysts forecast that EZCORP will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In other EZCORP news, insider Ellen H. Bryant sold 30,000 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.77, for a total transaction of $1,043,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 117,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,095,419.22. The trade was a 20.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 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 sale, 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 50,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,718,500. 2.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of EZCORP

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EZPW. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the second quarter valued at $270,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in EZCORP by 3,013.1% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 2,201,763 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $76,115,000 after acquiring an additional 2,131,038 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new position in EZCORP during the 2nd quarter valued at about $90,000. Triumph Capital Management grew its stake in EZCORP by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 14,324 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 642 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Navellier & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 203.0% in the 2nd quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 65,347 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,259,000 after purchasing an additional 43,780 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.83% of the company's stock.

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.

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