EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• EZCORP's stock price reached a new **52-week high** of $19.21, closing the day at $18.94 with a trading volume of **133,787 shares**.
• Analysts have given EZCORP a **'Moderate Buy'** rating, with Canaccord Genuity targeting **$25.00** for the stock price, following a strong quarterly earnings report that surpassed estimates.
• Insiders are active with recent transactions, including Director **Matthew W. Appel** selling 9,038 shares, indicating some movement among company leadership regarding stock ownership.

EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $19.21 and last traded at $18.94, with a volume of 133787 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.76.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on EZPW shares. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of EZCORP from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, EZCORP currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.50.

EZCORP Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.16 billion, a PE ratio of 14.90 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 6.31 and a quick ratio of 5.00. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $16.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.95.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $310.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $302.25 million. EZCORP had a net margin of 7.96% and a return on equity of 11.85%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Matthew W. Appel sold 9,038 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.02, for a total transaction of $162,864.76. Following the sale, the director owned 133,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,403,345.42. This represents a 6.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of EZCORP

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in EZCORP by 0.9% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 73,064 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,014,000 after buying an additional 648 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its position in EZCORP by 7.4% during the second quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 13,362 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 926 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in EZCORP by 60.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,062 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 1,906 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in EZCORP by 7.7% during the second quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 31,003 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $429,000 after buying an additional 2,208 shares during the period. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in EZCORP during the second quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 99.83% of the company's stock.

About EZCORP

EZCORP, Inc provides pawn services in the United States and Latin America. The company operates through three segments: U.S. Pawn, Latin America Pawn, and Other Investments. The company offers pawn loans collateralized by tangible personal property, jewelry, consumer electronics, tools, sporting goods, and musical instruments.

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