186,650 Shares in EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Purchased by Ancora Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Ancora Advisors purchased 186,650 EZCORP shares worth approximately $6.45 million, joining other institutional investors that collectively own 99.83% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with six Buy ratings and two Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $38.80.
• EZCORP shares opened at $35.23, while the company’s latest quarterly earnings of $0.47 per share exceeded estimates of $0.41; insiders have sold 50,000 shares worth $1.72 million over the past three months.

Ancora Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 186,650 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,452,000. Ancora Advisors LLC owned 0.30% of EZCORP at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EZPW. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP in the second quarter worth $31,000. KBC Group NV purchased a new position in EZCORP during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in EZCORP by 533.5% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,667 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 2,246 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in EZCORP by 21.2% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,146 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming increased its holdings in EZCORP by 178.1% in the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 11,069 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $154,000 after acquiring an additional 7,089 shares during the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on EZPW. Zacks Research lowered EZCORP from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. 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. Citigroup reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $44.00 price target on EZCORP in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, EZCORP currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $38.80.

EZCORP Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:EZPW opened at $35.23 on Wednesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $31.53 and its 200 day moving average is $29.81. The stock has a market cap of $2.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.79 and a beta of 0.66. EZCORP, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.20 and a 52-week high of $37.13. The company has a quick ratio of 3.45, a current ratio of 4.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 analysts' expectations of $425.83 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 13.99% and a net margin of 9.97%. Sell-side analysts predict that EZCORP, Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at EZCORP

In other news, insider Ellen H. Bryant sold 30,000 shares of the 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. This trade represents a 20.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Pablo Lagos Espinosa sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director owned 207,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,376,078.22. This represents a 4.60% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 50,000 shares of company stock worth $1,718,500 in the last three months. Insiders own 2.13% of the company's stock.

EZCORP 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source