EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Position Increased by Hsbc Holdings PLC

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 6.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,614 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,792 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.11% of EZCORP worth $901,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Teza Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 14,425 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $176,000 after acquiring an additional 896 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in EZCORP by 16.9% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,874 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 2,725 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in EZCORP by 4.3% during the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 80,099 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,179,000 after buying an additional 3,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in EZCORP by 9.3% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 39,760 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 3,393 shares in the last quarter. 99.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

EZCORP Trading Up 0.9%

EZCORP stock opened at $16.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 5.00 and a current ratio of 6.31. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a PE ratio of 13.02 and a beta of 0.56. EZCORP, Inc. has a 52 week low of $10.56 and a 52 week high of $16.67.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on EZPW shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded EZCORP from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. BTIG Research started coverage on EZCORP in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $17.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.50.

Insider Activity at EZCORP

In other news, COO John Blair Jr. Powell sold 3,500 shares of EZCORP stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.81, for a total value of $48,335.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 145,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,025.23. The trade was a 2.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.13% 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.