EZCORP, Inc. $EZPW Shares Acquired by Amitell Capital Pte Ltd

Amitell Capital Pte Ltd increased its holdings in shares of EZCORP, Inc. (NASDAQ:EZPW) by 7.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,699 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,461 shares during the quarter. EZCORP comprises 3.3% of Amitell Capital Pte Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Amitell Capital Pte Ltd owned about 0.47% of EZCORP worth $5,421,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 73,064 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,014,000 after purchasing an additional 648 shares during the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of EZCORP by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 80,959 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,541,000 after acquiring an additional 860 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its position in shares of EZCORP by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 13,362 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $185,000 after acquiring an additional 926 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in shares of EZCORP by 4.7% in the third quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 22,484 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its position in EZCORP by 9.2% during the third quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 13,013 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other EZCORP news, insider Ellen H. Bryant sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total value of $500,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 147,786 shares in the company, valued at $3,694,650. This trade represents a 11.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 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 directly owned 133,483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,403,816.50. This trade 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 a total of 84,138 shares of company stock valued at $2,102,416 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EZPW has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $34.00 target price on shares of EZCORP in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Stephens lifted their target price on EZCORP from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of EZCORP in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of EZCORP in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One investment 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.00.

EZCORP Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ EZPW opened at $25.93 on Thursday. EZCORP, Inc. has a 12-month low of $12.85 and a 12-month high of $26.35. The stock has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.62 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 6.03, a quick ratio of 4.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.42.

EZCORP (NASDAQ:EZPW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.15. EZCORP had a return on equity of 12.37% and a net margin of 9.18%.The company had revenue of $374.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.63 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that EZCORP, Inc. will post 1.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.