Quantbot Technologies LP Increases Stock Position in EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in EZCORP, Inc. by 398.7% in Q1, acquiring 79,870 shares for a total of 99,905 shares valued at approximately $1.47 million.
• Several hedge funds also made significant moves, with GAMMA Investing LLC increasing its holdings by 60.4% and multiple firms purchasing new stakes totaling several hundreds of thousands of dollars.
• Analysts have provided varied ratings on EZCORP, with the average rating being a "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.50.

Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW - Free Report) by 398.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 99,905 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 79,870 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP owned approximately 0.18% of EZCORP worth $1,471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of EZCORP by 60.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,062 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 1,906 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $91,000. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $138,000. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $149,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of EZCORP during the 1st quarter worth approximately $161,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at EZCORP

In other news, COO John Blair Jr. Powell sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.81, for a total value of $48,335.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 145,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,025.23. This trade represents a 2.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.13% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of EZCORP from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, August 1st. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of EZCORP in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.50.

EZCORP Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of EZPW traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $16.48. The stock had a trading volume of 93,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 977,972. EZCORP, Inc. has a 1-year low of $10.56 and a 1-year high of $16.66. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $14.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $14.37. The company has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 6.31 and a quick ratio of 5.00.

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

EZCORP Profile

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.