EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Shares Bought by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in EZCORP by 121.5% in Q4 to 644,120 shares (about 1.06% of the company), valuing that holding at roughly $12.5 million, and institutional/hedge fund ownership totals 99.83%.
• EZCORP beat Q4 estimates with $0.55 EPS vs. $0.40 expected and $374.5M revenue vs. $363.6M expected; the company has a $1.56 billion market cap and a P/E of 16.16.
• Analysts are generally positive—consensus rating is "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $28.00 after several upgrades—while insiders sold about 84,138 shares (~$2.1M) last quarter (insider ownership 2.13%).

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW - Free Report) by 121.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 644,120 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 353,327 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 1.06% of EZCORP worth $12,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,207,000. Miller Global Investments LLC acquired a new position in EZCORP in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,451,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in EZCORP by 163.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 483,211 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $9,200,000 after purchasing an additional 299,920 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of EZCORP in the 3rd quarter valued at $406,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of EZCORP during the third quarter worth about $933,000. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EZPW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of EZCORP from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of EZCORP from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of EZCORP in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citizens Jmp lifted their price target on EZCORP from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of EZCORP from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, EZCORP has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $28.00.

EZCORP Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EZPW opened at $25.21 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 0.49. EZCORP, Inc. has a twelve month low of $12.85 and a twelve month high of $27.30. The company's 50-day moving average price is $24.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.88. The company has a current ratio of 6.03, a quick ratio of 4.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.15. EZCORP had a net margin of 9.18% and a return on equity of 12.37%. The company had revenue of $374.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.63 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CRO Nicole Swies sold 24,138 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $597,415.50. Following the sale, the executive owned 115,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,852,833.50. The trade was a 17.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gary Tillett sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.50, for a total value of $255,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 133,483 shares in the company, valued at $3,403,816.50. This represents a 6.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 84,138 shares of company stock worth $2,102,416 in the last quarter. 2.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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