EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on EZCORP from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Roth Mkm assumed coverage on shares of EZCORP in a report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $16.00 target price for the company. Roth Capital set a $16.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, EZCORP presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.25.

EZCORP Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ EZPW opened at $13.17 on Friday. EZCORP has a 12 month low of $9.66 and a 12 month high of $16.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.91, a quick ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $724.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $14.58 and a 200-day moving average of $13.58.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The credit services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $306.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $310.35 million. EZCORP had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 7.25%. Sell-side analysts expect that EZCORP will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO John Blair Jr. Powell sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.81, for a total transaction of $48,335.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 145,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,016,025.23. The trade was a 2.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders have sold 86,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,220,010. Corporate insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On EZCORP

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EZPW. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in EZCORP by 246.7% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 32,833 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 23,363 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in EZCORP by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 246,887 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,017,000 after acquiring an additional 6,438 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in EZCORP in the 4th quarter valued at $210,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in EZCORP by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 304,235 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,718,000 after acquiring an additional 5,034 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its position in EZCORP by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 19,753 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $241,000 after acquiring an additional 6,360 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

EZCORP Company 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.